


Songbird

by TheWitchOfPlumHollow



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Bucky is a cinnamon roll, F/M, Fluff, Mild Smut, Natasha Romanov Is a Good Bro, Protective Bucky Barnes, Sam is a good bff, Steve Rogers Is a Good Bro
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-01
Updated: 2018-03-21
Packaged: 2019-03-25 08:30:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 89,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13830354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheWitchOfPlumHollow/pseuds/TheWitchOfPlumHollow
Summary: Olivia McBride is repressing the shit out of her past and trying to get by with her life while working at Avengers Tower in HR. She expected to just get by and exist. She definitely did not expect for tall, dark and brooding to enter her life, closely followed by Tony Stark who needs to meddle in everything, ever.





	1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1  
The blaring from her alarm clock on her bedside table was almost enough to wake Olivia McBride up, but not quite. Swinging an arm over and swiftly down onto the clock without even opening her eyes, she murmured something about not wanting to get up yet and rolled over. Her bed companion, however was not having it and gently nudged her.   
“Finn, dude, no. I’m not getting up yet. Piss off.” she grumbled into her pillow. More nudging, followed by more grumbling until Finn had had enough and jumped square onto her chest.   
“Ooof! Ugh, whyyyyyy” she groaned, looking up at her dog. “FINE, short walk and then we eat. Stop looking at me like that, we are not going for a run this morning.” as she sat up and started to throw some clothes on, digging under her bed for her shoes. It looked like it had rained last night, but not enough to completely cool down the late summer morning. 

A quick 30-minute walk later, Olivia and Finn were headed back to her apartment on the 12th floor of Avengers Tower. Finn, a beautiful white American bulldog mix was trotting happily next to her as they walked into the building.   
“Morning Artie!” she smiled to the doorman.   
“Morning Livvie!” He replied with a grin on his face. Of the rotating staff Tony Stark had working the front doors for the building, Artie was one of her favorites, even if he insisted on calling her Livvie instead of just Liv. Artie was everyone’s grandpa, remembering birthdays and telling jokes but also excellent at his job. Nothing happened at the front doors of that building without Artie knowing about it, even if he wasn’t on duty. Plus, he adored Finn (and the feeling was mutual), which came in handy when Liv had a nasty bout of the flu last year and couldn’t take him out for walks as much. Artie was only happy to help.  
“Hey, don’t forget to give this handsome guy an extra treat, ok? Never had one complaint about him, he’s a real trooper.”   
“Oh, don’t I know it” she replied, looking down at her slobbery companion. “I promise he’ll get an extra treat this week.”  
“Haha, I hope so. See ya later kiddo!”  
1 elevator ride later, Finn was happily shoving his face into his food dish, munching away at full volume while Olivia walked into her bedroom, sipping her coffee.   
“That good buddy? Don’t eat too fast, ok? THAT DOES NOT MEAN EAT FASTER..you know what never mind.” She laughed with an eyeroll. This dog was impossible. Standing in front of her closet, she tossed a pair of black cigarette pants on to her bed, followed by a peach v-neck and a black cardigan. She found her favorite black flats and placed them close to the bed and then finished her coffee with a gulp. Setting it down on her dresser, she walked into her bathroom and turned on the water for her shower to let it heat up. Out in the living room she could hear Finn jump up on the couch and turn himself around until he was comfortable, waiting for the rest of their morning routine. Giving him a quick scratch behind the ears as she walked by, Olivia switched on the radio in the living room area. Finn loved it, and she didn’t really question it. It was the only thing that stopped him from barking and destroying the place like a maniac while she was at work. Well, that and the dozen chew toys strewn all over the place. Luckily, she only worked a few floors up and could come down to see him during breaks and take him out on her lunch. Bending down to give him a big kiss on the head, Liv walked back into her room, ready to start her day.  
The clock read 8am but Liv had been at her desk for close to 30 minutes already with a second cup of coffee. Working in the human resources department at Stark Industries wasn’t the most creative job in the world, but she liked her work well enough, plus the pay was pretty good and the perks were killer. She had a great apartment with incredibly low rent that let her have a dog, plus medical and dental, on top of the occasional Avenger sighting. Everything a 28-year-old could want. It wasn’t a bad place to be at and it helped her get through the toughest part of her life. Her medical insurance paid for an excellent therapist and the co-pay on her medication was more than affordable. She hadn’t had a serious bout of depression or a major anxiety attack in months, which was a record for her. It helped that she was pretty good at her job, even if it was filing and data entry. She rarely made mistakes. She would even occasionally proofread memos for her supervisors. Liv was content. Not exactly happy, but definitely not unhappy. A quick knock at the doorjamb pulled her out of her reverie and she looked up to see the face of her boss’s boss, Maria Hill.   
“Good morning, Ms. Hill! Sorry about that, I was miles away.” She said with a half-smile, “Were you looking for Ava? I don’t think she’s in yet, but she should be by 8:15. I think she needed to wait for the nanny today.”   
“No, actually I was looking for you.” Maria answered, stepping in to your office. “I need some help at the main desk today and I believe you are the only other person trained in that phone and computer system. Angela called in today, and I must work on a very time-consuming and headache-inducing project for Tony. Would you mind covering at the desk until noon? I can probably pull someone from another department after that.”  
“Sure, I can do that. Actually, I can cover all day if you need me to. I’m a day or two ahead of schedule with my files so it’s not a big deal if you can’t find someone after lunch.”  
“Fantastic, I really appreciate it. I’ll head out there now so can gather anything you need and forward your phone.” She said with a small smile, turning on a heel and walking briskly to the elevators.   
Wow. Main Desk. While Liv was pleased that they realized she could handle that, there was a small, bitter part of her that knew that working the Main Desk at Avengers Tower was as far as she would most likely ever advance. She had occasionally looked at the job postings in the break room, and at the very least they all required an associate degree, and best a doctorate. Since she had neither, just a few years in college, so she was pretty sure it was going to be clerical work for life. It wasn’t the worst thing in the world, at least she had a job. She picked up her purse, and after a moment’s hesitation she grabs the framed picture of her hugging Finn in Central Park from last summer. Turning back for her coffee, she heads out the door to the elevators.   
She lived on the 12th, and the main offices were on the lower levels but the desk she was covering was much higher. She stepped in to the elevator and hit 75, the looked up as the little colored lights changed the more she rose. The whole building was 93 stories, but the chances of her ever going past the 75th floor were very, very slim. Like miniscule. Especially since the top 10 floors were basically Avengers headquarters, combined with Bruce Banner and Tony’s research and development floors, and then adding the floors dedicated to living space for the team…there was no reason for her (or most people) to ever need to go higher than the 75th floor. Which she now expected to be at, except the light dinged at 68, while the elevator slowed to a halt, doors opening to reveal Tony Stark himself. He glanced up, looked at the photo and purse Liv’s arms and did a double take.   
“Oh, god, you didn’t get fired and you’re coming to give me a piece of my mind, are you?” he asked with a smirk. Some people had a hard time gauging if Tony was being serious or joking with them, but Liv figured if you just assumed he was being a sarcastic asshole you were right about 90% of the time. (She overheard Pepper say that once.)   
“No, Mr. Stark” she smiled. “I’m covering for Angela at your main desk. She had to call in, and Ms. Hill is busy with a project, so they asked me to step in.”  
“Well aren’t you just the nicest thing. Do you always cover for Angela? I don’t think I’ve seen you here yet.”   
“Actually sir, I’ve worked here for 3 years. I am on a much lower floor though, and I usually stick to my office and the break room.” she said through a slight grimace, hating to embarrass him (even if it was kind of funny).   
“Oh. Well… You should take advantage of the apartments here. It’s pretty convenient living where you work.”  
“..umm….I do. I live here. On the 12th floor. So…”  
(Cue awkward silence.)   
“Great. That’s great.”  
Blessedly, the light hit 75, so they both sighed with relief. Tony almost positive he heard a small “Oh thank fuck” from Liv, the sentiment of which he totally echoed.  
“This is me. Have a nice day, sir.” Liv said with a small awkward smile as she stepped out of the elevator.   
“Tony!!” Maria called as Liv walked toward the desk. “Tony, I need to talk to you, are you on your way up? Oh god, please tell me you at least pretended to realize you were talking to an employee and not a random person off the street.” She said as Liv got closer, realizing they shared the elevator. She had to stifle a giggle at that one because no, he did not.   
“Maria, yes, I um…is my phone ringing? No? You sure? I should go see Bruce and get my ears checked then, okbye!” as he slammed the ‘shut door’ button multiple times.   
“I’m going to pretend he wasn’t that bad and that you aren’t completely offended.” Maria breathed, pinching the bridge of her nose with eyes shut.   
Liv let out a small laugh. “No! It wasn’t bad. I think I kind of embarrassed him when I had to point out I’ve been here for 3 years.”  
“Oh that must have been great!” Maria replied, laughing. “I wish I could’ve seen his face!”  
“That wasn’t even the best part”, Liv laughed with her, realizing just how funny it actually was, “He mentioned that I should take advantage of the housing here in the building!”   
That was where Maria lost it. Hand on the desk, she doubled over as the two of them let out peals of laughter.   
“He…has….no idea…how this place runs!” she gasped. “Oh my god, if we didn’t have Pepper we would’ve gone under years ago. Oh oh ohhh I need to go tell Pepper this one! Can you handle things ok from here? Do you need me to walk you through anything again?”  
“Haha, no I’ve got it.”   
“Great! Thanks again, for this and the laugh. I needed that. I’ll come down to cover you at lunch.” She said over her shoulder as she walked to the elevator, leaving Liv alone in the foyer area.   
Well, Liv thought to herself, this should be a relatively quiet day and a nice change of pace. She spent a few minutes rearranging the desk a bit and tidying up, finding the perfect place to put her picture of Finn. She settled in to a regular day, which it was. Phones rang, corporate executives showed up, only to be directed to Pepper’s assistant in front of her office down the hall. The whole day flew by, broken up by lunch and a quick walk for Finn. As she was gathering up her things to leave at 5:30, Maria called the desk line.   
“Hey Olivia, I’m glad I caught you. I lost track of time completely. Do you think you could cover the desk again tomorrow? Angela left me a voicemail earlier. She’ll be out tomorrow and possibly the next day. It sounds like a stomach bug.”  
“I don’t think it’ll be a problem with me covering, yeah I can do it.”  
After deciding Liv should just head straight up to the 75th tomorrow and that Maria would let her supervisor know where she’ll be, Liv gathered up her bag, leaving the picture there for now. Time to head home to a glass of wine and Netflix on the couch.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More chapters, as promised!   
> Sorry about the weird formatting, it's not cooperating with me properly, but I'll get the hang of it soon.

The next day was almost as uneventful, right up until lunch. Liv did her usual morning routine with Finn, got ready and headed up to the 75th floor, this time with no chance encounters from Tony in the elevator. Her morning was smooth, nothing was rushed and everyone got a smile. Liv was nothing if not good at her job. Maria couldn’t get a chance to cover her, so Liv ordered something to be sent up from the café downstairs and called down to Artie to see if he’d take Finn out. Just as she was coming back from the elevator where she’d met the delivery kid from the café, she spotted someone by the desk. He didn’t look familiar, but she didn’t know everyone, and he didn’t look like an executive. He was tall, and muscular with dark hair shading his eyes. Well if he doesn’t just fit the bill for the definition of ‘brooding’ Liv thought.   
“Hello, can I help you? I’m sorry I wasn’t at the desk just now” she said with a bright smile.   
“Yeah, I think Tony sent me here to pick up paperwork for me? I don’t really know. He said the girl at the desk would know.” He wasn’t exactly looking right at her, but he wasn’t avoiding her eyes, either.   
“That’d be me. Do you know anything else about this paperwork? Is it internal or do you work for another company?” He didn’t look like a courier, but you could never tell. Liv looked up at him and smiled again, immediately seeing he was incredibly uncomfortable.   
“Internal, I think. It’s for me specifically. It might be connected to paperwork for Capt. Rogers.”  
“Oh! I know exactly where that is, Maria told me someone would be down today to get it. I’m so sorry that didn’t click in my head at first. Can you wait here a minute?” Liv breathed, as she jumped up and walked over to the secure room next to her desk. Tony had decided that it was too easy to get confidential paperwork so anything they wanted a hard copy of for anyone on the upper floors was kept in a secured room with a code lock (temps were given code keys that were only good for as long as their shift was assigned). Finding the file was easy, it was one of the few files in the room not earmarked for Captain America. She almost dropped it when she saw the name though. Winter Soldier. Former HYDRA assassin, as old as Cap and deadlier than Natasha (but don’t tell her that). Wait, she thought, so this good looking guy (reeeeeally good looking guy) who was standing at my desk is a super assassin? She sighed. Things could be worse, I guess. He was just getting paperwork, not like he was trying to kill her at the moment. She walked back out of the door to see him holding the picture on her desk.   
“This your dog?” he asked  
“Yup, that’s my boy.” She replied.   
“He’s cute. What’s his name?” he said, putting the picture back in its exact place.   
“Finn, he’s an American bulldog mix.”  
“Finn?”  
“Yeah, well Finnegan but he only responds to Finn. Mainly because when I say Finnegan he thinks he’s in trouble and hides in the bathtub.”   
That brought somewhat of a smile out of the tower of a man standing in front of her. Liv slid the file toward him slowly.   
“I think this is the file you were here for. Is there anything else you need?”  
He stared at her for a long minute, then shook his head.   
“Thanks…”  
“Oh, sorry. I’m Olivia but you can call me Liv. If you need anything else today and tomorrow I can help, but after that I’ll be gone.”  
“Why, did you quit?”  
“What? Oh, no. I work on another floor, I’m just covering while someone is out.” She oddly felt like she wanted to keep talking to him, he seemed nice. Maybe it was because he was someone different and new people can be interesting.   
“I think I’ve got everything I need. Thanks, Liv.” He turned to walk away shifting the paperwork to his left hand.   
“Hey, where’s your dog while you’re at work?” he asked right before he turned the corner.   
“He’s in my apartment, I live in the building. Why, do you want me to schedule a playdate with him?” she teased with a small smile.   
“What? No. I was wondering. Because dogs shouldn’t be alone. Ok…bye” as he quickened his pace and stalked off.   
“So, you met Bucky” came a voice from beside her  
“HOLY JESUS, don’t do that to me” Liv jumped, clutching her chest and turning to face the smirking form of Tony Stark followed by Bruce Banner as they stepped off the elevators.   
“We’re sorry, we didn’t mean to be rude” Bruce said with a pointed look at Tony.   
“No, it’s ok” Liv smiled, “I didn’t even hear the elevator ding, I must have been lost in thought.”  
“Sure, that’s what it was, Ow!” Tony yelped, rubbing the spot where Bruce dug his elbow into Tony’s ribs.   
“Anyway,” Bruce sighed, “we were here to pick up the applications for the internal promotions. I don’t know of Maria left them with you or with her.”   
Liv paused a minute and looked around, “I don’t see them here, but I think I can always print them out from here. If you can give me a few minutes, I can print them, so you have hard copies, or I can send the files to your email or tablet, whichever is easier for you to go through.” Liv did a few keystrokes on the computer in front of her and looked up at Bruce and Tony, waiting for their answer.   
“How do you know how to do all that. Angela has no idea how to do that. Why aren’t you working here all the time? And send them to his tablet, it’ll be easier,” Tony narrowed his eyes at her.  
“Sure, they should be uploading right now. Let me know if it doesn’t work and we can try something else. I’ll also let Maria know you’ve stopped by, I think she wanted to give you some input on candidates.”  
“That’s great, thank you. I didn’t catch your name?” Bruce murmured, extending a hand  
“Olivia McBride, everyone calls me Liv. Pleasure to meet you Dr. Banner.” Liz grinned while shaking his hand. Tony was watching the scene and giving Liv a hard stare.   
“Seriously though, why don’t you apply for one of these positions. You’re obviously capable. Cold feet?”  
“No,” she said through a clenched jaw. This was embarrassing, and she was trying very, very hard not to make a fool of herself, “You need at a minimum an associate degree for these positions and I never finished college.”   
“What, seriously? Why didn’t you finish?” Tony prodded.   
“Tony, this is personal, we don’t need to pry.” Bruce said as he tried to steer Tony to the elevator.   
“No, it’s fine. My mother died during my sophomore year and I never went back. We didn’t have the money and I wasn’t in the right headspace for it. Then time went on and it was more the money than anything else. I love my job here, though, please don’t fire me for not having a degree.” Liv blurted out. Oh god, what the HELL did I just say, she thought to herself.   
Bruce and Tony were quiet for a minute until Bruce spoke up. “I’m so sorry you lost your mother.”  
“Thank you.” Liv answered with a small smile.   
Tony, however was staring at her with an odd look. She blinked, and looked over to Bruce, who had also noticed ‘the Look’.   
“Oh no, Tony, no. Stop. I don’t know what you’re thinking but I hate it and we’re going. It was nice to meet you Olivia.”  
Liv nodded at him as he practically yanked Tony away from the desk, dragging him down the hallway.   
I mean, Bruce seemed nice, she thought, not at all like an angry green rage monster comes popping out. So, there’s that.   
Liv sat back down to a few phone calls and meetings scheduled, nothing out of the ordinary. Maria Hill came out to see her at the end of the day and see how she was faring.   
“So. Interesting day you had, I’ve heard.”  
“Yeah…. I guess you could say that.” Liv answered. It had been unusual. Not bad though, not bad at all.   
“So, you met Tony, Bruce, AND Sgt. Barnes. What did you think?” Maria mused. She was honestly curious about Liv’s thoughts on the three, as a civilian. Especially Bucky, since he was still acclimating to life on the ‘outside’.  
“Bruce was very nice, he’s so polite. I like him. Surprisingly soft-spoken. Tony is Tony. I can’t help feeling like I’m about to be an experiment though, he was giving me a weird look as they left. Like how a scientist looks at a rat in a maze.”  
“And?”  
“What. Oh, the other guy? What do I even call him. I’m guessing he doesn’t like Winter Soldier, but Bucky? James? Sgt. Barnes? What does he prefer?”  
“I don’t even know,” Maria said after a pause. “I never thought to ask. Cap would know, probably. I just don’t talk to the guy though. I think you said more to him today than I ever have.”   
“Really? He seemed kind of nice. He seemed to be a fan of my dog. It was funny, he was a bit concerned about where Finn is while I’m at work. I kind of teased him about it, said something about scheduling a playdate and I think it annoyed him. I feel a little bad now.”  
“You’re probably the only other person in this building aside from Steve that feels bad for James Barnes.”  
Liv frowned, “That’s a shame. I kind of liked talking to him.” Maria’s eyebrows shot up in surprise but Liv didn’t notice, she was getting her purse together and throwing away old notes.   
“As great of a job as you did here, you don’t need to come back tomorrow. I’m covering the morning and Angela should be back after lunch. I really do appreciate helping me out like this though, thanks.”  
“Oh anytime!” Liv replied, “I like what I do down on the 20th but this was a nice change of pace. Let me know if you need me again though.”   
“I will, don’t worry. I’m sure something will happen with Angela again eventually, and it’ll be the exact moment I need to do something for Tony,” Maria said as she shook her head.   
They shared a small chuckle and Liv gathered up her things and headed for the elevator. She waved a small goodbye to Maria and walked over to the elevator just as the doors opened, letting other staff off.   
“Hey!” Maria yelled with a smile, “If Barnes asks about you, what should I tell him?”   
“I have literally no idea, just don’t make it terrible!” Liv shouted back, laughing as the doors closed. 

The rest of her week went by without a hitch. She caught up on her paperwork so she ended up a day ahead again, and she got in a good 2 mile run with Finn on Friday morning before work. She was back to her normal routine, even sneaking down to a corner deli on her lunch and getting Artie a black and white cookie before he left on Friday evening. She spent her Friday night as usual, with a nice glass of wine, curled up with her dog watching Netflix. Saturday morning, however, was a little out of the ordinary. She woke up to Finn nudging her as usual, took him out and came back to make coffee. 

*Ding*

She was still towel drying her long hair when she heard her laptop. She had an email? This early? It wasn’t even 7. Still in her robe, she padded over to her desk and sat down, checking her email. Her jaw dropped. 

Tony Stark. Why was she getting an email from the personal email of Tony Stark. What did she do?? Oh god, they really are going to fire her. Where is she going to go? She literally has nowhere to go! And Finn, what happens to Finn, she didn’t even own a car, her savings was ok but not enough to sustain them oh god oh god oh god….  
Liv slowly turned back to the laptop. Looking down at Finn, she sighed. “I should probably open this, huh? Get it over with?” Finn looked back with big black eyes, not judging. 

She double clicked to open it and then read the email. The read it again. She stood up and walked out of the room. Turned around and walked back. No way. This must be a joke. Tony wants to meet with her this morning in his office on the 90th floor this morning at 7:30??? Who fires somebody with a personal meeting at 7:30 on a Saturday morning. What a dick. Liv reread the email 3 or 4 more times, just to be sure. Yup, there it was. “Casual meeting, this morning at 7:30 in his office on the 90th. Bring your dog”   
Wait, what, bring my dog? Did he want to kick him out?   
Liv sat back in her chair and rubbed her face with her hands to get the cobwebs out. She looked over at Finn, who just tilted his head.   
“Buddy boy, looks like we’re going up to see Tony Stark. First, pants though. Definitely need pants. And probably a bra.”  
30 minutes later Liv and her happy dog were riding the elevator to the 90th floor. She managed to throw on skinny jeans, her chucks and a shirt, but at least put on makeup and a little perfume. She looked down at Finn, with his pirate collar and matching leash. Yup, they looked casual all right. 

The elevator dinged that they were on the 90th and Liv waited for the doors to open, reminding Finn to sit. As they slid open, Liv realized Bruce Banner was standing in front of her and her face broke into a grin.   
“Hello! Fancy seeing you again!” she said smiling.   
“Actually, I’m here to collect you,” he answered smiling. “Tony sent me. I wanted to be involved in this meeting. I know, he explained nothing. Follow me, I’ll walk you to his office. Do you want your dog there or should somebody watch him?”  
“I’m not really sure, Tony said to bring him,” Liv said as they walked by one of the Avengers common rooms. Maria walked out of a nearby doorway to meet them, to Bruce’s surprise.   
“That was my idea. I thought somebody could use a little playtime.”  
“Oh, he already got his walk today and we’ll probably go for a run later soo” Liv started.  
“Not for Finn. For him” she smirked as she pointed behind her. Liv and Bruce, confused, turned to see Bucky walking up to you. He let out a small smile, “If you don’t mind.”   
“Oh my god, you actually scheduled a playdate with my dog” Liv giggled. “No, I don’t mind at all. He’ll love somebody new, he’s probably sick of me,” she said while handing Bucky the leash. “If you take him outside, keep him on the leash. He gets distracted.”   
Bucky glanced up at her. “Outside?”   
“Yeah, if you take him to the park.”  
“I don’t really go out….much.” He was boring holes into her head with how hard he was staring.   
“Oh. Well. He likes fetch and tummy rubs.” She said awkwardly, completely forgetting what to do with her own hands.   
“Ok. So….Tony is waiting. Bucky will probably be in a gym in here with your dog, so we’re all set?” Maria said, eyes flicking back and forth between Liv and Bucky. Liv was looking at her dog but Bucky, he was definitely looking at Liv.   
“Sure! Let’s go,” Liv said. “Is this a bad meeting or a good meeting? Did I do something wrong?”  
Bruce sighed. “No, I don’t believe you did anything wrong other than telling Tony Stark anything personal at all.” Liv blinked at that. She didn’t think it was possible to be more confused than she was earlier, but there she was. They continued down a longer hallway until Maria punched a code into a recessed door to the right. It swung open revealing a large office, with a desk near the floor to ceiling window at the back.   
“Bruce! You found her, great. Everybody have a seat, we’ve got some logistics to figure out.” Tony jumped right into his presentation, “Everyone wants to advance in life right? We all want to do better? Except some of us can’t for one reason or another. Usually we can control why but sometimes we can’t and that’s why you need people who CAN control things to help you.”

Liv just started at him. “Are you….talking about my life? Do I seem like I’m not in control of my life? Wait, is this a weird intervention?”   
Tony stopped and looked at Bruce, “Am I not being clear? Help me here.”  
Bruce stepped forward, “What Tony is trying very unsuccessfully to say is that we want to help you advance in your career and we know that’s hard to do without a higher education, so we’d like to help with that in a very Stark-like way.”  
“Thank you, Bruce,” Pepper Potts chimed from speakerphone on Tony’s desk, “I apologize for not being there Ms. McBride. It’s been a busy week. I’ve looked in your files. You’ve been here for 3 years and have never taken a vacation, never needed extra time for family travel during the holidays and you’ve only called in sick twice. In Three years. Clearly dedication and hard work are not the reason you never continued with higher learning.”  
“No ma’am. That’s never been the reason. Honestly, one of the days I called in sick was for my dog, he wasn’t well. And I have no family to speak of, so holidays are just days to me.”  
“Yes,” Pepper said softly. “I read all of your file. I know.”   
Liv felt the color drain from her face. Nobody knew about that. She never mentioned it in her interviews and never talked about it. She had no idea how to react to it. And judging from Tony’s and Bruce’s faces, they had no idea either. It didn’t surprise her that Maria knew though. Nothing got through her.   
Liv swallowed hard, “What, um…what exactly is this opportunity then?”  
“It’s very unique. Tony has some friends at NYU and with some hefty donations and some guest lecture agreements, you’ll technically be enrolled as a student there, whenever you’re ready. Tuition paid by Stark Industries.”  
Liv was in shock. Tuition paid. At NYU. She had no idea what to say.   
“Just out of curiosity, what does ‘technically’ mean in the case?” she waited. That was a heavy word, that one.   
Tony stepped up at this point and took the lead, “We couldn’t get you enrolled as a regular student. Too much red tape, even for us. But we designed a special program where you’ll be taking classes here, in the tower. Vision will give you a basic knowledge test and we’ll set up classes from there. You can meet with Bruce tomorrow or later today to figure out your general major and then we’re off.”  
“You’ll bring professors here? To the Tower? Liv asked. That must’ve been one hell of a donation.   
“Yes and No,” Bruce replied. “We’ll be your professors. I’ll teach you Biology and Chemistry, if you’d like and Tony can teach you robotics or engineering, Pepper has even volunteered to teach you statistics and economics, if you feel like that may something you might be interested in. I’m sure we could figure out more, but that’s what we’ve thought of for now. What do you think? Does this sound interesting to you?”

Liv was trying very hard (and failing just as hard) not to cry. They arranged this for her? Why her?   
She took a very slow breath.  
“You did this for me? You don’t even really know me. I’m a little stunned,” she said softly, “I’d love to do it though, it’s just a lot to process.”  
Pepper laughed- “That’s understandable, don’t worry. We’ll have Vision set up his general knowledge exam and we’ll go from there. I’m very excited to see how this goes.”  
“Yeah, me too. Don’t hang up though Pep, I’ve got one more thing to tell her. Liv, you’re fired.”  
Aaaaaand there it was. This was all a prank and she was actually getting fired.   
“Do what now?” she whispered  
“Jesus, Tony, look at her. What the hell,” Bruce shot a look at Tony, “Olivia, you’re fired in that you don’t have to go to work but Pepper has arranged for a stipend to be deposited into your bank account just like your salary. And you can keep your apartment. Please breathe, ok? It’s ok.”  
Bruce could see she was starting to calm down, so he took a step back next to Maria. Liv closed her eyes and listened to Pepper berate Tony on the phone for a second and then stood up.   
She looked over at Tony, who had gone silent.   
“When can I take the test?”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oy, again with the formatting.   
> Anyway, you can see a little bit more of what Liv is getting herself into with Tony. 
> 
> I should add, in my head this all happens after Civil War, but it gets a different resolution, as in they don't split up like a boy band. Because I have enough stress in my life and I need resolution. Also, a lot of this was written before I saw Black Panther.

After what has easily been one of the weirder weeks of her life, Olivia McBride settled into a new routine. She no longer had to get up at 5 to take Finn out, instead she took him out at 5:30 and then once she was showered and ready for her “classes” she brought him up with her to the 91st floor. Tony and the others thought it was easier for her to go to them instead of each of them having to go to her every day. Once she was up there, she barely saw Finn. First thing in the morning, she handed him off to Bucky, who took him for a few laps in one of the massive training rooms, and then she was off to a conference room. There was sort of a set schedule, but nothing like an actual college schedule with exact times. She and Bruce had, after an hours long conversation, figured that she had an aptitude and an interest in STEM and/or medical fields.   
Once her general knowledge test with Vision was complete, it was up to Bruce and Pepper to design her curriculum. Luckily for all of them, she had ‘tested out’ of any sort of English class, which was great because Bruce had no idea who would teach her an English course. Bruce thought he could split it into different multi-week blocks, like a semester but with more flexibility. As of right now, she would have Biology with Bruce (lecture and a lab session) and European & Early American history with Steve. Eventually she could have a chemistry lesson with Bruce, World History with T’Challa, Dr. Strange for anatomy and physiology, and possibly more classes if they needed to. Natasha had volunteered to teach Liv a language or two, which she accepted (even though Natasha scared the bejesus out of her) and Bruce had arranged for guest lectures from Hank Pym and Rhodey (microbiology and diplomacy, respectively).  
Liv’s favorite part of the whole situation, however, was that Wanda Maximoff was now taking the classes with her! She had never gone to college, so after Tony pimped out Bruce to NYU for 1 lecture a semester, Wanda was given the same opportunity. Clint didn’t think he had much to offer in the way of education, but he offered to give her archery lessons, if she wanted (she totally did). Liv had fallen into an easy relationship with the superheroes, which still surprised her. As much as the public seemed to put them on a pedestal, they were incredibly easy to get along with. Even Natasha, who initially terrified Liv. She’d become closest to Wanda though, and Sam to an extent. She enjoyed spending time with all of them though.   
As it was, Liv and Wanda had just walked in to the common room to take a break between lectures to find Steve giving Bucky a hard time about not teaching a class.   
“C’mon Buck, you could easily teach them something. It’s just Wanda and Liv, not a whole lecture hall. And they’re a bright pair.”  
“Oh, thanks Steve, Liv, did you hear? We’re bright” Wanda teased.  
“Golly Wanda, I don’t know if I can carry on with those type of compliments,” Liv laughed in return. Steve rolled his eyes.   
“All right ladies, very funny. Now do you think you can help me convince my friend here to give you a class?”  
She glanced down at Bucky. He refused to look at anyone except Finn, who he was playing tug-of-war with. His shoulders looked so tense, every muscle was a coil ready to snap. There was red creeping up the back of his neck behind his ear.  
“Actually Steve, I don’t think I want Bucky to give a lecture on anything.” Liv offered.   
Bucky’s head snapped up, and for a split-second Liv could’ve sworn he looked offended. He turned to her, eyes narrowed, “Really, you’re not siding with him?”  
She smiled at him and was shocked at how his face softened. “No, I’m not. Finn means the world to me and knowing he’s with you, occupied all day and not cooped up in my apartment is a huge comfort. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you doing this every day with him.”  
Bucky shrugged, looking up at Liv, “It’s nothing. It feels more like you’re doing me a favor letting me hang out with him. It’s nice to have something around me that isn’t secretly terrified.”  
“I’m not terrified of you.” Liv said, quicker than she meant to.   
He looked up at her, locking eyes. Liv sucked in a breath and looked away, turning red. Bucky was suddenly very interested in something on Finn’s collar.   
Steve and Wanda exchanged a glance. Neither one of them missed the look that happened between Liv and Bucky. Steve smiled. He hadn’t seen Bucky ever embarrassed around a girl before. Maybe this was a good sign.   
“I think with all the studying we’ve been doing, that we need a girl’s night,” Wanda decided with a huge grin.   
“What’s this about a girl’s night?” called Natasha from the hallway, “Are we doing girl’s night already?”  
“YES! We need it! Come on Liv, we’ll finish class this week and do it this weekend. We deserve it. You can even sleep in my room! We can do movie night with everyone out here and then girl’s night in my room! Pleeeeeease? I’ll bet Bucky can watch Finn if you ask him nicely,” Wanda pleaded, hands clasped in front of her with the worst puppy eyes ever.   
“I’m in!” Natasha yelled.  
Liv glanced over to Bucky, “Would you mind? He might not sleep in your room though. He’s picky.”   
“I don’t mind. We’ll be fine, we’re best buds now.” Bucky assured her, wrestling with her dog.  
Liv sighed, smiled and turned back to Wanda. “I feel like I’m going to regret this, but yeah. Let’s do it.”   
Wanda literally did a small happy dance, which made Liv and Steve laugh.   
“You have to promise you’re not going to try and trick me into something else before the week is out, we have a Bio test on Friday, you promised me we’d study on Thursday.”  
“I promise,” she squealed, “No girls stuff until after classes on Friday!”  
“Speaking of, ladies,” interrupted Steve, “I believe we have a Revolutionary War battle to learn about.”   
Wanda and Steve turned to head to a conference room, but Liv held back for a second. She swallowed.   
“Bucky?”  
“Yeah?”  
“I really meant what I said about you watching Finn. He’s my world and I love how you love him. So…thanks. I guess.” Liv turned to head to her lecture with Steve.   
“Did you mean it?” Bucky said softly.   
“Mean what, about how you love my dog? Of course I- “  
“No, about not being terrified of me,” he cut her off, staring at the floor.   
Liv took a step closer to the couch so she could rest her hand on his left shoulder. She watched him tense up and then freeze.   
“I meant it. I’m not afraid of you. If Finn isn’t, then why should I be? Besides, lots of veterans have prosthetic arms. Yours is just really shiny,” she said with a grin. To her surprise, Bucky reached up and put his right hand on hers, gave her a quick squeeze and let go. She slid her hand off his shoulder and walked back to the conference room for her lecture, totally oblivious to the sounds of Wanda and Steve scrambling to get to the right places before they were caught watching her. But even they didn’t see that Natasha had been watching the exchange with a soft smile on her lips.

Liv and Wanda sat on the couches in the Avenger’s common room, slightly stunned. It was Thursday night and they were taking up most of the space on the coffee tables with notes and books and diagrams and more notes. Bruce’s idea of a Biology exam/lab practical was tomorrow, and they were trying to make sure they were prepared (neither one felt prepared, by the way). Steve had been kind enough to schedule his test for the following Friday, as well as cancel their lecture tomorrow to relieve a bit of stress but it wasn’t helping. The girls had been studying since 8am and it was now close to 2pm. They were frazzled. Clint, Natasha and Vision were training, Sam and Steve were over at the VA and Bucky was somewhere with Finn.   
“Wanda.” Liv muttered with her head leaning back on the couch, “My brain feels like mush. I think we need a break.”  
“Yes, I agree,” she mumbled. She had been sitting on the floor and had put her face on the coffee table in defeat.   
“We need chocolate. Or something. Anything.” Liv was trying to think of anything she had in her fridge.   
Wanda sat straight up, “I know what we’re doing,” she said, grabbing Liv’s hand, “We have brownie mix somewhere in the kitchen. We are going to listen to terrible pop music and make brownies.”   
“YES, this sounds brilliant. I am 100% behind this plan.” Liv exclaimed, following Wanda into their kitchen.   
20 Minutes later the brownie mix was located, ingredients were laid on the counters and the oven were preheating. Wanda was rummaging around in the cupboards trying to find a mixer.   
“FRIDAY, can you access my Amazon music?” Liv said to nobody in particular.   
“Yes, I can miss. Would you like me to play something for you?”   
“Yes please, can you play my Good Mood playlist? Please and Thank you!”  
Sting’s “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” came singing through the speakers in the kitchen, which caused Wanda to laugh out loud.   
“I love this song!” she yelled, dancing in the kitchen. The two of you started to mix the brownies up and by the time the next song was on, there were ready go to in.   
“You have this song. You own it. You. Really??” Wanda was totally amused by the next song.   
Liv huffed, “First of all, it’s on random, secondly yes I love this. Now shut up and dance! FRIDAY, turn it up!!” It was loud enough at this point you were positive that people on Long Island could hear Taylor Swift telling you to shake it off.   
Wanda and Liv were dancing around the kitchen, laughing and smiling, jumping and blowing off some steam until Liv turned and something caught her eye. She let out the biggest involuntary scream, and then collapsed in laughter on the floor. Wanda whipped around to see that Bucky had been leaning up against the door, arms crossed watching them the whole time.   
“Bucky!! WHAT THE HELL. I think I just died a little,” Liv gasped between laughter. “How long have you been standing there?!”  
He smirked. “Long enough to know that you can dance, even if your taste in music is terrible.”  
“Rude. And that was not dancing, that was blowing off steam. We’ve been studying since this morning.”  
He immediately uncrossed his arms and took a step closer. “I know you have, I wasn’t trying to say otherwise. You’re doing really great with this, they’ve all said so. Both of you are.”   
Liv brushed the hair out of her face and looked up at him. He had the bluest eyes she’d ever seen. The kid of eyes that make you forget English. Which is exactly what happened at that moment. She took a deep breath and pulled herself up. Neither one of them had noticed yet that Wanda had long snuck away and left them alone.   
“They’ve said we’re doing well? Really? Sometimes I feel like I’m in over my head and I’m just not smart enough for some of the things they’re trying to teach me. There’s so much information.”  
“No, you’ve done really well so far. I think you’ve impressed Bruce. They’re all really proud of you.”   
Liv blushed. She hadn’t heard anything like that in a very, very long time. “Really? Everyone?” she laughed, looking at Bucky, meaning that she had even impressed Pepper or Natasha, but the way Bucky was looking in to her eyes clearly meant something else.   
“Yes. Everyone.” She smiled. Suddenly she realized he was much closer to her. When did he walk across the room? Or had she? Either way, they were inches apart. Liv could feel her heart pounding through her chest and she was almost positive Bucky could hear it. Which was funny, because he was thinking the same thing.   
“Bucky, I- “  
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP  
They both damn near jumped out of their skin. The oven was going off. Liv whirled around and rushed to grab oven mitts to get the brownies out before they burned but when she turned back, Bucky was gone. She really wasn’t sure why that made her a little disappointed. 

Later that night, after she and Wanda had finished studying, Sam had finished off most of the brownies and Steve had ordered them to bed (A good night’s sleep and something about being prepared...), Liv lay in bed replaying what happened. He was so close to her and she hadn’t minded it at all. He had even come back in to the common area later after dinner and she realized seeing him made her happy. It shouldn’t. It shouldn’t feel like that with anyone, not anymore. She let out a huge sigh and looked over at Finn.   
“I think we’re in big trouble buddy.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case it isn't obvious, I'm taking some serious liberties with the American college system (mainly because it's ridiculous as it is) and because it's my story so that means I can.

Steve walked over to the elevator lobby only to find Liv sitting on the floor by elevator doors, Finn next to her and surrounded by notes.   
“How long have you been here?” he raised an eyebrow, “If you don’t know it by now, you’re not going to before the test.”  
“Shh….I know. I’m just really anxious,” she answered, shaking. Finn had his head in her lap and was pushing himself closer in anticipation of an anxiety attack.   
“No, buddy, I’m ok today. I have my pills,” she murmured to the dog, “You get to go play with Bucky again.”   
Steve watched her, closely. There were enough people in this building, hell on this floor, that knew about panic and anxiety disorders. If something happened during her exam, she’d be with two people that could handle it. Still, better to be prepared.   
“Do you need to me to tell Bruce to postpone the exam?”  
“NO! I mean, no, Steve, I can do it. I’ll be ok,” she gathered up the papers and notes and shoved them into a folder to sort out later. “Let’s go.”  
“Well, you’ve still got about 45 minutes. Come into the kitchen, Wanda is making eggs and I’ll get you some coffee.”  
Liv let out a small sigh, “Coffee sounds like bliss. Lead the way Cap.”  
Steve chuckled and they both headed toward the kitchen. Wanda was already there, looking like she was trying to remain calm, but her shoulders relaxed when she saw Liv walk in with Steve.   
“Oh, I am so glad you’re here. Come, sit, I’ll get you food.” She pointed to a seat at the breakfast bar next to Bucky, who had his right hand curled around a Starbucks cup. Liv tossed her folder onto and end table and Finn ran over to take a nap on the dog bed Bucky had put in a sunny corner for him.   
“Wanda, that smells so good! What are you making?” Liv sniffed the air, “And Steve, I believe you promised me coffee. Which I need to live right now.”   
Bucky slid his coffee over to her. She glanced up to see him looking at her a bit nervously. “I went out a little early and grabbed you this. Caramel Macchiato, right? That’s the one you like?”   
Liv was stunned for a second and her jaw dropped, making Bucky second guess himself but then her face broke out into a massive smile.   
“Yes! That’s my favorite! How did you know? This is just…. this is really sweet. Thank you,” She smiled at him while taking a sip, “I feel so much better about today now.”   
Bucky ducked his head and hid a smile as Liv wrapped her hands around the cup and closed her eyes. She was adorably happy sometimes about the smallest things.   
“I..uh…heard you saying something about it to Wanda once.”  
Wanda raised one eyebrow, which nobody but Steve noticed.   
“What was that for,” he whispered  
“I don’t think we’ve ever talked about coffee,” Wanda whispered back with a soft smile.  
“I can’t believe Buck went to a Starbucks,” Steve whispered again. He would have given anything to see the barista’s face when Bucky walked up.   
Steve turned to look at Bucky but spotted Natasha walking in to the kitchen, smiling to herself when she saw Bucky and Liv.   
“You guys making eggs?” she asked as she swung herself up onto the counter next to Steve, with a wink. “Mind if I jump in on this breakfast? I don’t have a meeting until 10.”  
“Sure!” Wanda exclaimed, “Let me get you a plate.”   
The bustling around the kitchen resumed, eggs were plated and eaten, coffee was finished, and Wanda & Liv were sufficiently fed and relaxed just as Bruce walked in.   
“Are you two ready?” He smiled to the girls.   
Wanda swallowed hard and Liv let out a long, slow breath. They glanced at each other and both stood up. Liv started to laugh.   
“What?” Wanda asked her, starting to laugh herself  
“We look like we’re going to an execution!” Liv giggled, “It’s just an exam!”  
They both were still laughing as they followed Bruce into the conference room, nervous but ready. Steve looked over at Bucky, who was watching Liv walk away and then over at Natasha, who was looking back at Steve with contrived innocence.   
“Ok you two, what’s going on,” Steve asked, crossing his arms. “Wanda says she never talked about coffee with Liv, Buck. How’d you know?”  
“Must have been just a lucky guess then,” Bucky answered  
“Buck- “  
“Listen, Steve. She lets me hang out with her dog all day, she’s the nicest person and she isn’t terrified to be around me. She tripped and grabbed my arm the other day to keep from falling and she looked surprised after. She forgot it was metal, Steve. She forgot I had a metal arm. I want to do nice things for her because she does nice things for everyone else. Why is that bad?”  
Steve sighed. “It’s not Buck, but what else did you have planned? Nobody knows that much about her apart from Hill and Pepper, and I don’t see you strolling into their offices asking for advice.”  
Bucky glanced over at Natasha, who was watching the exchange silently.   
“I don’t know exactly what, but I’ll have a better idea soon.”  
Steve looked from Bucky to Natasha, eyes narrowing. Then it dawned on him.   
“Nat, no. I thought you three were supposed to have a nice, relaxing girl’s night after their exam. Don’t turn it into an interrogation.”  
Natasha looked offended. “Steve, you sweet summer child. Girl’s night is all about interrogation. What boys you like, what music, what nail color or whatever. It’s subtle, but it’s still recon.”  
“You can’t do recon on a girl’s night!” Steve yelled.  
“I’m multitasking,” she said with a glint in her eye. Bucky snorted.   
Steve glanced over at him. “You, shut it. We’re taking Finn for a run and then we’re training until lunch.”  
They glanced over at Finn, who was sunning his tummy on the dog bed, tongue lolling out.   
“Ok, maybe save the run for later.”

4 grueling hours later, the girls emerged from the conference room frazzled but triumphant. They were both confident that they did well on the exam AND on the lab practical. Vision had been there to help as well, staying on Liv’s side of the room but clearly watching Wanda, which Liv thought was adorable. As they threw themselves onto the couch, Bruce walked out after them holding their papers in his hands.   
“I’ll have these graded before the movie tonight, unless you want Vision to check them now.”  
“No!” they both shouted.   
“Sorry, Bruce,” Wanda laughed, “we both need time to decompress. Before the movie is just fine with me.”  
“Me too!” piped up Liv, from her position on the other couch.   
“No problem. I really do think you both did well on the midterm though.” Bruce said while turning toward his lab.   
“Midterm? I thought this was just an exam,” Liv asked, “Wasn’t that awfully quick for a midterm?”   
“Technically yes, but with Tony’s accelerated program and how often you’ve been sitting for classes, this being a midterm isn’t that unusual. Steve’s test next week serves as a midterm as well. Did no one really tell you this?”  
“To be fair, it wasn’t on the syllabus,” Wanda grinned at Bruce.   
“Wasn’t it? Hmm. Interesting.”  
Liv and Wanda exchanged a glance and then smirked at Bruce’s retreating frame.   
“Ugh, I just want to take a nap. I feel fried,” Liv sighed, settling deeper into the couch, “I’m not moving for another hour.”  
Wanda’s stomach rumbled, followed by Liv’s.   
“I don’t think your plan is going to work,” Wanda laughed. “Want to get changed and then grab lunch? We’ve still got girl’s night tonight after the movie, don’t forget!”  
“I didn’t forget, don’t worry. You wrote it on the calendar on my fridge in huge red letters, remember?”  
“Remember what?” Steve was walking around the corner followed by a running Finn, who jumped all over Liv, covering her with kisses.   
“Hi buddy! Who’s my best boy, oh I missed you too,” Liv crooned to her dog, throwing her arms around his neck and looking up at Steve, “Wanda wanted me to remember about my ladies’ night tonight with her and Natasha.”  
“That’s not until after the movie though, you’ll be at that right?” this time from Bucky, as he rounded the corner behind Steve. They had both clearly been training or running with Finn because there was a faint glisten of sweat still on Bucky’s shoulders and collarbone. His workout tank was clinging to him and sweatpants he had on were not helping the fact that Liv had currently forgotten every single word she had ever learned.  
“What? Yes, I’ll be there. Here, I’ll be here….for the movie thing. Tonight. Yeah.” She glanced over at Wanda, silently begging her to help. Wanda just smiled and looked over at Steve, who was watching Liv and Bucky with a grin spreading across his face.   
“That’s good to hear,” Steve added, “because I was thinking of ordering Chinese for tonight instead of the regular pizza and I wanted your input.”  
Wanda nodded, “That sounds great! Let me know when you’re ordering, and I’ll help you figure out what everyone wants.”  
“Sounds good. Liv? What about you,” Steve inquired.   
“Um, yeah that sounds great actually. I love Chinese takeout.”  
“See Buck?” Steve grinned, “I told you takeout was a good idea. Liv loves takeout.”   
Bucky just grunted and narrowed his eyes at Steve, turning to look at Liv only to be met with a slightly confused look.   
“Is Sam coming tonight?” Wanda asked quickly, changing the subject. Bucky rolled his eyes and walked over to sit near Liv. She turned a slight shade of pink as he got closer and shifted to let Finn on the couch between them.   
“He should be,” Steve answered, “I’ll get a head count in an hour and text you. Meet back here at 3 to decide on the menu?”   
“That sounds good Cap, we were just going to grab lunch. Liv? Ready?” Wanda looked over at Liv who was watching Bucky pet Finn with a very soft look on her face. Wanda smiled. Movie night was going to be very interesting. 

Later that day, after lunch and Wanda had split off to find Cap and order a ridiculous amount of Chinese food, Liv was back at her apartment with Finn. She was antsy. Her place had already been cleaned, books reorganized. She had even cleared out old emails and done a little online shopping. She looked over at Finn, who was pacing near the window.   
“You know what, that’s it. We’re going on a run in Central Park,” she declared. Jumping up and heading into her room she was changed 15 minutes later, pulling up her hair into a ponytail. Midcalf leggings and running shoes with her sports bra and favorite Labyrinth tank top seemed appropriate since the weather was incredibly warm for late fall and she really liked how the top showed off her arms. She had worked hard to maintain her weight and was very proud of herself. Now if she could only find the damn leash. Looking over the apartment a few times and making sure it wasn’t hanging on the hook by the door she suddenly realized she must have left it up in the Avenger’s common room. Since inside the building wasn’t an issue for Finn being off leash, they headed out into the hallway and into an elevator. A minute later they were walking into the common room, where Liv was already scanning around for the leash. Finn had already made himself comfortable on the couch.   
“Really?” she smirked at him, shaking her head. Looking near the doors, she headed over to the kitchen and was just about to pull out her phone to text Wanda about it when she spied a bit of blue underneath one of the couches. Walking over she knelt and started to pull it out when Finn jumped on her and she fell back, smacking her head on a coffee table.   
“Oh, fuck me,” she grimaced, squinting her eyes as she rubbed her head.   
“Maybe later, cupcake” came a voice from the hall.  
“JESUS CHRIST,” she yelped, “Sam! You cannot do that to me,” she laughed, still rubbing her head and jumping up to give him a quick hug. “When did you get here?”  
“Couple minutes ago. I was looking for Cap though. Seen him?”  
“No, but I bet he’s with Wanda. Or, hey Bucky might know,” she said, spotting him heading their way. Bucky glanced up at the mention of his name and stopped in his tracks at the sight of Liv in her running outfit. He knew she had a great figure but now he could see the muscles in her thighs and arms, and her collarbone…. Bucky swallowed.   
“Hey Tinman, seen Cap?” Sam yelled to him.   
“No.”  
Liv glanced from Bucky to Sam. “Well, ok then. I’m just gonna grab this leash and take Finn out. So…be nice,” she leveled at Sam. She gave him a quick pat on the arm, swooped down to get the leash and headed over to the elevators, calling Finn as she left. Bucky just stared at her walking away. He could swear he saw a hint of a tattoo on her back, but he wasn’t sure. He looked over to the table and grabbing something quick he chased after her.   
“Liv!” he called, “Wait!”  
She had just pressed the button and was attaching the leash when she looked up, surprised to see Bucky chasing after her.   
“If you’re going for a run, you might need water,” he thrust the water he had grabbed off the table into her hand.   
“Oh jeez, thanks! My head’s been all over today, I completely forgot. Thanks Bucky!” she smiled.   
He smiled back, and they just stood there for a few incredibly awkward seconds. This elevator was taking forever.   
“So….hey, do you have any tattoos?” He asked  
“Me? Why do you ask?” she babbled, turning a bright shade of red and looking everywhere but at Bucky.   
“It looked like…you know what. Never mind. Not a big deal,” he muttered, “I’ll see you later” as he turned and headed back to the room right as the elevator doors slid open.   
“Thanks for the water,” she whispered as she pulled Finn into the elevator, tears forming in her eyes. She looked down at the furry companion next to her.   
“What do I do now, buddy? What am I supposed to say about it?” she sighed, hoping this run would get rid of the extra tension.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please, feel free to comment with anything. ANYTHING. Like I said, this is my first ever fic, so let me know what you think. Thank you!!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soo....yeah, this is where it gets a little heavy. Sorry.

Movie night was fantastic and just what she needed. At Wanda’s request, she headed up with hair still damp from a shower, overnight bag in tow, with Finn to be met by most of the Avengers, with few exceptions. Cap and Wanda were arranging all the food on the table while Clint and Natasha were getting plates and utensils. Vision was in a video conference with T’Challa in a corner and Tony was, of course, mixing drinks behind the bar with Rhodey. Sam was standing with Bruce and Pepper in another corner, arguing over movie choices and Bucky was being Bucky; present, but on the fringes. He had placed himself on the couch corner furthest away from the action, but looked up when Liv walked in. She gave him a small wave and headed over to grab a Guinness from Tony.   
“Hey kid,” he intoned from behind dark blue-tinted frames, “I hear classes are going well,” as he slid a pint over to her. She grabbed a bar stool next to Rhodey and took a pull on the beer.   
“Have you? I’m certainly feeling more confident about it. It’s amazing Tony, and I can’t say thank you enough.”  
“Oh, you’ll be paying for it once you’ve got that degree and he makes you come work for him forever,” Rhodey chuckled.   
“Oh no, working here with state-of-the-art lab equipment and brilliant minds, how will I ever cope” she retorted, laughing with him.   
“I’ll remember you said that. FRIDAY, make sure you’ve got that on record!” Tony countered.   
Liv laughed and picked up here beer, turning in her seat to watch everyone. She couldn’t believe this group were her friends, especially with her history. Sometimes she couldn’t believe she opened herself up again, even as little as she had with Wanda. Maybe it had been long enough to change that, she wondered. Rhodey’s laughter snapped her out of her reverie though.   
“Where the hell did he get that?” he snorted. Liv followed his eyesight until she spotted Bucky with Finn, and a really tough looking rope. He had the dog playing tug-o-war on the floor by the couches. Where did he get it from, it looked brand new. Did he buy that just for Finn?   
“Oh yeah,” Tony interrupted, “The World’s Oldest Assassin has discovered Amazon Prime. It’s been mostly books and DVD’s, but he ordered a huge amount of dog toys recently. I assumed you knew,” as he looked at Liv pointedly over his glasses.   
“No,” she murmured, “I didn’t.” 

Sometime later, after the movie (Star Wars: A New Hope, which was why Pepper was arguing with Sam. “It’s in chronological order, why would we start with 4?!” she kept saying. “BECAUSE YOU JUST DO” Sam would snap back.) they were all cleaning up and Wanda whirled around to look at Nat and Liv with a devious grin. Oh no, Liv realized too late what was happening.   
“It’s TIME!!!” she cackled, launching herself towards Liv, “Let’s go! Grab your bag, we’re heading into my room and no boys allowed.” She linked her arm into Liv’s and started heading away.   
“Wait, I need to take Finn out! And shouldn’t we help with the clean up? And WAIT A MINUTE,” she yelped, whirling Wanda around. “Bruce! You never gave us our grades!! Oh god, did we do that badly!?” Liv looked to Wanda in horror. Bruce coughed, and shuffled a bit. The only thing in Liv’s head at that moment was Shit, shit, shit….  
“Actually, you both did quite well,” Bruce started, “I’m very proud.” The girls smiled at each other.   
“Well, come on, man! Let’s hear it!” Sam yelled from across the room. There were a few laughs, and everyone shifted so Bruce was the center of attention, and they were near the girls.   
“As far as the exams go, you both scored quite high. Both 96%.” He said, reading from a paper he pulled from his pocket. Liv and Wanda gave each other a hug and the group murmured congratulations while the girls clasped hands and waited for the lab practical results.   
“The lab practical was a bit different, but still very impressive. Liv, you scored a 97%!” Wanda turned with a grin and gave Liv a huge hug, Tony sat by the bar with a smug smile, nonetheless proud and Steve came over to shake her hand. That was when Liv felt the cool hand on her shoulder and turned to see Bucky next to her, with a small smile and a congratulatory nod. Liv blushed and smiled back, turning back to Wanda, who was making the most ridiculous face at her.   
“Well, Bruce, what about Wanda’s results?” Nat asked from the kitchen.   
“She did…she did very well. Wanda got a perfect mark on the practical.” Liv jumped up and crushed Wanda in a hug, incredibly proud of her friend. Wanda looked stunned, but clearly pleased.   
Bruce had been worried that there was going to be hurt feelings, but he was so relieved to see this   
reaction.  
“What a great ending to a great night!” Wanda exclaimed, “now we can head right to the girl stuff!” Liv smiled, but turned to grab the leash and take Finn out.  
“Go on, Steve and I will take him out,” promised Bucky, taking the leash from her.   
“Thank you, again,” she beamed and reached up to give him a quick kiss on the cheek before she even realized what she was doing, “you’re amazing.” Bucky blinked, jaw slightly dropped, and Steve broke into a HUGE grin. Before she could make an ass out of herself any further, she scooped up her bag and practically sprinted with Wanda into her room far down the hall. 

They slammed the door shut behind them, knowing Nat would join in a few minutes. Liv was already laying on the bed, face down, face in a pillow.   
“Oh my god, tell me I didn’t kiss him on the cheek in front of everyone,” she mumbled. Wanda was already bustling around, getting music ready to play and putting Liv’s bag on her small chair next to the window.   
“Oh yes, you definitely did,” she objected. “If it helps, he looked more stunned than offended,” she laughed.   
“No that does not help. I’m going to live in here now. I’ll stay under your bed like a weird hobbit and come out at night for food. This is it, this is my life. Because I’m a jackass,” she lamented while rolling over. What an idiot she was.   
“Oh noo,” Wanda sympathized, “He doesn’t hate you, you know. And it was just a kiss on the cheek! Perfectly innocent.”  
“Wanda, you don’t understand. I haven’t kissed anyone, at all, in any way since-“  
They were interrupted by a knock on the door and Nat walking in with a small bag.   
“Sorry girls, I needed to grab my bag and I really had to hang behind to see Barnes’ face after that,” Natasha teased, “I’ve never seen anyone take him by surprise like that, well done Liv.”  
Liv groaned and rolled back over.   
“Wanda, can’t you like, zap that out of his memory or something?” she whined.   
Wanda laughed and spun a small trinket off her desk with her powers. “No, I couldn’t. It doesn’t work exactly like that, and even if it did, I’m not taking that moment from him. How many girls do you think have kissed his cheek and called him amazing in the last 70 years?” Nat nodded and looked at Liv.   
“She’s right. I’m going to be blunt here. Do you like him or are you taking advantage of how much he likes your dog and clearly has a crush on you?”  
“Nat!” Wanda exclaimed  
“What? No! I’m not taking advantage!” Liv sputtered, “I mean, yeah I love how much he likes spending time with my dog and I really like spending time with him, he is really cute and ohmygod I have a crush on the Winter Soldier.” The realization spread across Liv’s face like crimson. She hung her head in her hands and just sighed. Wanda walked over and softly put a hand on her back while shooting Natasha a look.   
“Liv? What’s so bad about having a crush? Is it his past, does that bother you?”  
She let out a big breath of air and raised her head, looking at Wanda and Nat, holding back the tears in her eyes, “No, it’s not his past exactly. It’s mine. I just…I’ve never really talked about it. It’s a lot.”  
Nat huffed and they both looked at her.   
“Well, girls, I was told that unless somebody ends up crying then it’s not a real girl’s night so I’m glad we’ve ticked that off the list. On to the next part of the agenda,” she muttered, rummaging in her bag, finally pulling out two bottles of Tony’s very expensive vodka and 3 shot glasses, “Let’s get drunk!”

Wanda was laying on her back on the floor, spinning a shoe with her powers. Liv was sitting with her back to Wanda’s bed, humming to the song coming from the iPod and Nat was sitting curled up in Wanda’s chair like a cat, watching the two of them.   
“You’re both lightweights,” she teased  
“s’rude. You’re rude,” stammered Wanda.   
“I have never been more offended in my life and as soon as I figure out which one of you is talking I will be very upset,” mumbled Liv. Wanda giggled at that and Nat let out a small laugh.   
“You two don’t move. I’ll go grab us some water. Last thing I need is the two of you hungover tomorrow,” she ordered, getting up and heading towards the door. Just as she was about to leave, Nat turned around, placing her hand on the wall near the light switch, “I mean it, stay put.” And left.   
Wanda sat up, letting the shoe fall near her. She looked over at Liv, remembering something.   
“Hey, what did you mean earlier?”  
“Hmm?”  
“Earlier, when you said you hadn’t kissed anyone ever since something and then Nat walked in.”   
Liv tensed. She turned her head and stared at Wanda for a long minute. She looked like she was trying to decide something in her head.   
“You know, I think I’m just drunk enough to tell you right now and forget that I told you by tomorrow morning,” Liv observed, “but just let me talk. No questions in the middle or I might not get through it, ok?”  
Wanda nodded, sitting up more comfortably.   
Liv took a deep breath and braced herself.  
“Remember when there was that huge incident in Washing DC a few years ago? When all those helicarriers came down and SHIELD went all to shit? I was there. I was in Washington. I saw most of it happen, watched the pieces come crashing down onto the city and I couldn’t do a damn thing about it. I had gotten trapped in a hotel room. I went back for something and they closed the roads right after I walked into the lobby.” She took a shaky breath. This was the part that almost nobody knew, the part she hid deep down. Liv looked over at Wanda, who reached out and squeezed her hand.   
“I didn’t go to the city alone. I was there with my father, and,” she closed her eyes slowly, trying to stop the tears, “and my family. I had a husband, I had 2 children. They were so small then. Twins, they had just turned a year old. We were going out for the day together and I realized that I had left the diaper bag in the hotel room like an idiot, so I went back. My dad wanted to, but I told him I’d go. I took a cab and the minute the hotel doors closed behind me we heard the booming. I remember watching through the hotel doors as metal fell from the sky. The roads were closed, they wouldn’t let anyone go anywhere. So, I went up to my room and watched everything from the window. I couldn’t get ahold of my husband on his cell, or my dad. I had to wait, for hours and hours. I don’t think I’ve ever felt to tired and so awake at the same time in my life. Finally, they let everyone out of the hotel and,” her breath was coming out in gasps now, the tears falling from her face, unchecked, “they were gone. My family. They were crushed or something by some huge piece of debris, I never actually found out exactly. I didn’t want to know. I just knew they were gone. They were everything in my world and I lost it all at once,” she leaned into Wanda, tears falling freely from her eyes while Wanda cried softly next to her.   
“What did you do, how did you end up here?” Wanda asked softly.   
Liv sniffed and brushed her hands across her cheeks, taking a breath. “I spent almost a year doing nothing. I slept all the time, I cried, I ate. I didn’t live. I existed. Then the money ran out, so I needed to work. I went to a temp agency who sent me to a few places and then eventually, to here. Pepper found out about my family a few weeks after I was hired as a temp and she brought me in for a long conversation with Maria. I know now who that day was there, and why everything happened (in a very basic manner). I don’t think she wanted me to find out from a different source and realize I’ve been working in the same building as the people who killed my family, in her eyes. I don’t blame anyone here for what happened.” She blinked and suddenly sat up, looking at Wanda, “Aside from Pepper and Maria, nobody knows this but you. Please, Wanda, please don’t tell anyone. I don’t want to be looked at like I’m something to be pitied. I’m ok now. Please,” she pleaded.   
“Shh, it’s ok. I promise,” Wanda answered, giving Liv a hug as more tears fell. 

In the hallway, Bucky and Nat stood frozen, listening by the open doorway. Nat had found him in the kitchen and roped him into helping her carry some water. They had stopped dead in their tracks at the mention of Washington and Nat’s eyes grew wider, eventually closing them to stop the tears when she realized what happened to Liv. Bucky felt his heart drop to his knees. He did this. He tore her world from her. How could she be so nice to anyone, much less them after that? He felt the water bottle squeeze in his metal hand as he thought about how many lives he had ruined like that. Nat snapped her head up to look at him and put her hand on his arm softly, shaking her head silently. She didn’t want them to realize they were out there, but it was too late. Liv had heard the plastic crunch.   
“Nat? Is that you?” she called, walking over to the door, just in time to see Bucky stalking down the hallway. She looked over at Nat, confused until she saw the slight tears in her eyes. She whipped her head back to him, realizing what they heard. “oh no….no, no, no.” Liv whispered and slowly looked back to Natasha.   
“How much of it.”  
“I don’t know what you’re talking-“  
“How. Much.” Liv demanded.  
Nat took a breath. “All of it. We heard all of it,” she waited, watching Liv, “How could you come up here every day and look us in the face, knowing what happened? Knowing who died?”  
“I do,” came a voice from behind Liv, “I do it every day. I lost my brother, my parents and I’m still here every day with all of you. I could easily blame you and the rest of the team for what happened but where would that get me? I’d be alone and bitter,” Wanda looked over to Liv, “I understand.”   
Liv looked at her gratefully and reached back to grab her hand. Nat looked from Liv to Wanda and nodded. Liv glanced out into the hallway again.  
“Should I go after him, should I see if he’s ok?” she took a step forward, but Nat held her back.  
“No, give him time. It’s a lot to process,” she pulled the girls back in to the room after her, “speaking of Bucky, I think we have a little bit to talk about in that department? Wanda says you’ve got a little crush on him and now that we all understand why you’re so conflicted, I think we can help you out.”  
Liv felt herself being pulled back into the room by the two of them, grateful for the change in subject. She could already see the wheels turning between the two of them. Liv groaned inwardly. There was no way she was going to get out of this now.


	6. Chapter 6

Liv woke up the next morning in Wanda’s room, well before sunrise. She wasn’t surprised, it was around when she usually woke up and she always had a rough time sleeping in an unfamiliar place, especially if Finn wasn’t snoring near her side. Getting up carefully, she tiptoed out to the hallway. Maybe she could get a few moments alone and watch the sunrise in front of those gigantic windows in the common room.   
She stood by the windows watching the city for a while until she heard someone behind her. She turned and gave him a small, sleepy smile and went back to watching the lights in front of her. Bucky hesitated, but slowly walked up and stood a few steps behind her.   
“morning,” his voice barely above a whisper.   
“Morning,” she answered, “Couldn’t sleep?”   
“I was about to ask you that. I don’t really sleep much.”  
“I’m always up early. Besides, I’ve always wanted to see the sunrise from this high up,” she shivered. A moment later, Bucky was coming up behind her, wrapping a blanket over her shoulders. She let her fingers touch his as she took the blanket from him and looked up at his face. He was so close again, she could feel his breath. Her heart was pounding, and she felt like she couldn’t take a full breath. Then her chest started to hurt, oh no. No no no, not now! She’d been so careful with her medication and trying to stay calm but drudging everything up last night, on top of the exam stress must have had an unintended effect. Bucky could immediately see the change in her features as concern flashed across his face.   
“What is it, what’s wrong?” the worry obvious in his voice. He gripped her hand tighter.   
“I’m having a panic attack,” Liv gasped. Where were her pills?? In her purse? Which was in Wanda’s room. Where was Finn??  
“I need to sit down…I need to breathe…I just-“ and with that Bucky had scooped her up and was carrying her over to the couch. Why did she already feel calmer in his arms? That was unusual, to say the least. The pounding in her chest felt like it wouldn’t stop, and she couldn’t tell if it was from him or the panic. He placed her on the couch, but she wouldn’t let go of his hand.   
“Please…stay with me for a minute. It’ll pass, I think” she pleaded.   
Bucky looked down at her, slowly sitting in the space beside her. She leaned forward so he could settle his shoulder behind her and draped his arm over her while she leaned back and rested her head against him. He was frozen, afraid to move.   
“Just stay with me a minute Bucky,” she whispered, closing her eyes and willing her breath to slow down.   
He wrapped his other arm around her and leaned down to rest his chin on her hair.   
“I’m right here, I’ll stay,” he breathed.   
He could feel her breathing slow down and within minutes it seemed as if she was fast asleep again. Bucky was afraid to move. There was a woman asleep against his body who asked him to be there. She wanted him next to her. His mind was racing. After everything he heard about her past last night, why did she want him around her at all, forget as a comfort. She shifted her weight slightly and he could feel his whole body stiffen, waiting for her to get up and leave. He realized he didn’t want her to, not at all. Bucky wanted her to stay right where she was. He looked up as he heard someone walking down the hallway, prepared to shoo them away and let her sleep but relaxed once he realized it was Steve. Bucky looked over and put a finger to his lips to warn him she was sleeping. Steve took one look at the scene, Liv wrapped in Bucky’s arms asleep with a small smile on her lips and Bucky looking relaxed for once and he decided to slowly back away.   
“I’ll take her dog out for you,” he mouthed, which got him thumbs up from Bucky. Steve walked away smiling to himself. It was about time, Buck deserved it and Liv was a genuinely sweet girl. She’d quickly become a welcome addition to their little misfit family. Giving them a few minutes alone was well worth taking her dog out on this chilly morning.   
Liv’s eyelids fluttered open a short while later. Realizing she was still leaning on Bucky, she shifted to see if he was awake. Meeting his eyes, she smiled sheepishly.   
“I’m sorry about that, I’ve usually got it under better control. Sometimes it can take a lot out of me,” she mumbled while starting to shift away from his side.   
“No, it’s ok,” Bucky started, “and you don’t have to move right away. You can stay here for a little more. If you want.” His voice lowered, glancing over at her.   
“Bucky?”  
“Yeah?”  
“Are you alright?”  
He was not expecting that at all. She was asking if he was alright? She just had a panic attack. And after what she said last night? She was making sure he was ok? He just blinked and looked back at her.   
“It’s just that Natasha said you heard everything I told Wanda, and I wanted to make sure you weren’t…I don’t know. I just worried.”  
Well that threw him for a hell of a loop.   
“Shouldn’t I be asking you if you’re ok?” he interrupted, “especially after everything that was said last night? How can you be worried about me at all?”   
“Bucky, I know you’re not exactly the same person you were 4 years ago. I don’t think I’ve ever really held anyone responsible, aside from HYDRA. Horrible people cause horrible things to happen, especially to good people. If what I’ve heard about you is close to true at all, then you’re just as much a victim of their chaos as I am. I mourned, I screamed at everyone that told me there was a plan in all of this and then I picked myself up, got a ton of therapy and I can finally look back on my memories with them in peace. I’m still working through a lot of things, obviously, but I’m ok. I really am,” she assured him.   
“When was the last time you talked about them?” he asked, after a while.   
“Honestly, it’s been years. The rest of my family is dead, and I didn’t really have many people that I was close to before that. I don’t know if I wanted to talk about any of it, at all for a long time and then it just became a habit.”  
He hesitated.   
“Would you tell me about them sometime?” he asked softer. He wanted to know everything and anything about her, and her family was part of her.   
Liv was touched that he asked. She leaned into him again, wrapping his arm around her.   
“I’d love to, one day.”


	7. Chapter 7

  

The next week flew by and Steve’s Early American History midterm was one of the easiest tests she’d ever taken, but mainly because Steve had made each battle come alive for them. She and Wanda had aced his exam, which came as no surprise to anyone. Liv had been spending more and more of her time on the upper floors, between classes and studying with Wanda. She’d even have the occasional night of staying up until the early hours of the morning, talking with Bucky on one of the couches in the common room. Finn even had his own bed in Bucky’s room and a food dish in the kitchen (courtesy of Bucky’s amazon prime), in case Liv was up late studying with Wanda. On more than one occasion Cap had woken up early to find them already in the kitchen laughing over coffee with Finn happily munching away on his breakfast. Tony had even surprised her with a newer, bigger apartment on a much higher floor (80th) so she ‘wouldn’t be so far away’, to quote him which Liv rolled her eyes at. She was an elevator ride away, not in Jersey. On this morning however, she and Finn had stepped out the elevator to Sam, looking grim.

                “I think school’s out for the day, cupcake.”

Liv looked around, no Bucky (who tried to always meet them first thing, so they could hand off Finn) and no Wanda, Cap, Bruce, or Vision.

                “What’s going on? Did something happen?”

Sam nodded, leading her into the kitchen, “Yeah, Tony got a hit on an arms dealer they’ve been tracking. They left a few hours ago. I got the message to meet you here, so you wouldn’t be worried, but I assumed I’d have more news for you by now. I’m sure everything’s fine though. FRIDAY is there any news on the team?” he questioned the air.

                “No sir, but there is a private message for Ms. McBride. I can play it for you when you wish or send it directly to your tablet.”

Private message? Probably from Wanda, teasing her about something and telling her not to worry, but that wasn’t very private information. Liv was making a very valiant effort NOT to look at Sam, who was doing a very good job of trying to stare her down.

                “Um….could you maybe take Finn out? Bucky usually does it as soon as I get here so he’s a little used to it,” she timidly requested, “pretty please?”

Sam rolled his eyes and took the leash. “There had better be some coffee left when I get back,” he threatened.

                “Thanks, you’re a doll!” she shouted at his back. Liv waited until the heard the smooth swish of the elevator doors shutting until she spoke again.

                “FRIDAY? Can you play that message for me now?”

                “Of course, Miss.

 _Hi Liv,_ (Bucky? He left her a message before a mission??) _I won’t be there when you wake up, I mean I won’t be there when you get to our floor and I don’t want you to worry. It’s just a routine recon mission, nothing serious. We’ll be in and out in 2 days, tops. I had Steve ask Sam to come and let you know where we all went. Maybe I’ll have a new story to tell you when I get back…………I um……. I’ll miss you. See you soon._            

“That’s the end of the message miss,” FRIDAY intoned, “Would you like me to play it again?”

 

Liv listened to it 3 more times before Sam got back and even had FRIDAY send the voice file to her tablet. She was grinning from ear to ear. He said he’d miss her! She did a little happy dance in the kitchen until she brought herself back down to earth. She was a grown ass woman and she was acting like a teenager.

 

But he said he’d miss her!!

 

She was making herself and Sam some breakfast when Maria Hill walked in 45 minutes later.

                “Olivia. Sam., I take it you know the team is on a mission, so Bruce and Steve won’t be giving any lectures for the next 2 days?”

                “Yeah,” Sam offered, “I told her earlier.”

                “I’m sorry, I can leave. I know I’m not really supposed to be here unless it’s degree related,” Liv spoke up, “I wasn’t thinking.”

                “No,” Maria stopped her, “stay. I’m training you with something I’ve been meaning to do for a while now. Sam, actually you can give me a hand. Tony can even call it a “guest lecture.”

                “Really? What am I giving you a hand with?” Sam queried. He was intrigued.

                “Field medicine. We’re going to give her a bit more advanced EMT training from what I’ve showed her so far. It’s the perfect time, since the team is away and it’s something she needs to know if she’s going to be around Buc-the _team_ as often as she has been. We can always use an extra pair of hands in the med labs. Grab your things, let’s go.”

Liv was startled, but ready. Just one thing though…

                “What about Finn?”       

                “Already on it,” she called over her shoulder, “Clint is on his way. He’ll be here in 5. I’ll meet you 2 floors down.” Liv and Sam heard the elevator ding as she left.

                “Well. That was unexpected,” Liv shrugged, glancing over to Sam, “If you want to head down, I can meet you there. I’ll tidy up the kitchen a bit.”

Sam looked around. The kitchen looked fine, but whatever. He nodded, swallowed the last of his coffee and headed toward the elevator. Liv waited again until he left before she spoke.

                “FRIDAY? Is there a way for you to get a private message to Sgt. Barnes while he’s on a mission?”

                “Yes miss. I can send one as a voice file he can retrieve when he’s free. Just start speaking when you’re ready.”

She paused for a minute, gathering her thoughts. It was now or never.

Clearing her throat, she started.

                “ _Hey Bucky. Thank you for having Sam let me know what was going on, you were right that I would have worried about you. I mean the team. Worried about the team. I can’t wait for the new stories. So…yeah. Just come back to me, ok? I mean to the tower. Not to me._ (god dammit…) _I mean… I miss you too. Be safe.”_

                She sighed. That was a mess.

                “Would you like me to send that, Miss?” FRIDAY intoned from the air, somewhere.

                “Ugh, you’d better. If I try that again I’ll babble even more.”

                “Consider it sent. I can let you know once Sgt. Barnes opens it, if you’d like. I should warn you, he may not be able to reply.”  
                “Thank you FRIDAY, that’d be great.” Liv stared up at the ceiling in awe of how much an idiot she sounded like.

                “What’s going to be great? The next two days without Vision floating through walls?” Clint joked as he walked into the kitchen.

                “Haha, yeah…..it’s nothing. Anyway, here’s his leash. Sam took him out already, he’ll probably just lay around. He’ll tell you if he needs to go outside. Thanks, Clint” she said as she gave her dog a hug and a big kiss on the head, ruffling his ears. Liv stood up and turned to walk away until Clint spoke.

                “No problem. Quick question though- do you leave every Avenger cute private messages or just the ones with a metal arm?”

Liv whirled around to Clint’s smirking face. “I, uh….he, um….I,” she sputtered.

                “HA! You should see your face!” Clint was cracking up, “Oh my god, that’s great. I’m kinda mad I didn’t get a picture. Ohh…that was good. Honestly kid, don’t worry. Your secret is safe with me. Now move your ass and get down stairs before Maria comes back up to get you,” he mentioned while sauntering over to the couch. He didn’t have to though, Liv was already halfway to the elevators.

 

The next few hours flew by. Maria was impressed with how fast Liv was picking up some of the information and Liv was enjoying herself. She had forgotten how much she enjoyed feeling useful. Working with Sam was fun, too. He had a great sense of humor, but he knew when to be serious. He could even get Maria Hill to crack a smile. Focusing on everything in the med lab and laughing with Sam had almost distracted her from Bucky potentially being in danger. Almost. It wasn’t until later that night, after she had made herself dinner and was sitting down with Finn on the couch when FRIDAY chimed into her room.

                “Good evening Miss McBride.”

Liv jumped and almost dropped her plate. “Oh! FRIDAY, I didn’t realize you could work all the way down here.”

                “Mr. Stark extended my range to include your apartment Miss.”

She sighed. Of course he did.

                “No, it’s fine FRIDAY. Did you need something?” (please be Bucky, please be Bucky…)

                “Yes Miss. Your package has been delivered and opened, as of 3 minutes ago.”

(YES!!) Liv coughed, “That’s great FRIDAY, thank you…..there’s no reply?”

                “Not as of yet, Miss. As I said though, he may not be able to right away. I can’t tell you where he is, but I can tell you his vitals look fine.” Liv let out a breath she hadn’t even realized she was holding. He was Ok.

                “Thank you so much FRIDAY. I feel much better now.”

                “Of course. Miss?”

                “Yes?”

                “There is a significant time difference. If there is a reply, would you like me to alert you as soon as it comes in, or when you wake up?”

                “Hmm...I’m not really sure.  How about when I wake up, unless it’s an emergency?”

                “Yes Miss. Good night.”

                “Night FRIDAY.”

Liv settled back on to the couch, lost in thought. He was ok. He heard her idiotic message, and he was still ok. She had surprised herself at how much she was worried. Bucky has even said it was routine though. And how had she even come to care so much about him in such a short time? Liv stared over at Finn, who was slobbering on yet another new toy from Bucky.

                “I was right before, bud. I’m screwed.”

 

Liv’s morning routine the next day was pretty much the same, aside from the *ping* from her phone as she stepped out of the shower. Wrapping one towel around herself and drying her hair with another, she stepped over to see a text alert.

                “Good Morning Miss.”  
                “Oh, g’morning Friday.”

                “I see you’ve received the text alert. Sgt. Barnes was unable to send a private voice message, but I took the liberty of adding your phone number to his contacts list and vice versa. I didn’t think you’d mind.”

                “No, I don’t mind. Thank you, FRIDAY.”

 

                _Hi Liv. Sorry about the texting, but I’m not getting a lot of privacy out here. Hearing your voice in that message was exactly what I needed though. We should be finished tonight so don’t worry doll, I’ll be home soon. I can’t wait to see you. -B_

That was the exact moment Liv discovered that she could still giggle like a teenager over a boy. Ugh! She really needed Wanda here to show this to! Should she text him back? What should she say? Could she even text him back or was it dangerous?

                “FRIDAY?”

                “Yes Miss?”  
                “Is it safe for me to send a text back to Bucky?”

                “Yes Miss, it’s on a secure channel and all communication devices have been designated ‘silent’ for the team.”

                “Great, thank you FRIDAY.”

               

_Hey Bucky. Don’t worry about the texting, I like seeing your name pop up on my screen. Don’t rush back early if you don’t have to, just come home Sgt. Barnes. I’ll see you soon.  -Liv_

 

She stared at it for a few minutes, muttered “fuck it” and hit send. There it went. A few minutes later, while she was putting her chucks on her phone pinged again.

               

_Hey Liv, I’ve got some bad news. We found one more base nearby that Steve wants to clear out before we head back so I won’t be home tomorrow, but it won’t be long after that. I really can’t wait to see you. -B_

_Be safe. I’ll be here when you get back. I’m not going anywhere. -Liv_

 

            Liv was grinning ear to ear as she stepped off the elevator to hand Finn over to Clint again later that morning. She hadn’t heard back from Bucky after her text, but she didn’t need to. He missed her, and she missed him just as much. As she headed down to the med lab, she started thinking about whether she should do something special for him once he got back. Maybe make him dinner? Bring something sweet up to the common room? She did make a mean lemon cake. Th elevator doors opened, and Liv was so lost in thought about potential dessert recipes she almost ran into Sam walking by.

                “Whoa, where’s the fire?” she exclaimed.

                “Sorry cupcake, you move too slow!” Sam teased, “Maria just got to lab2, head on down. I’ll be over in a minute.”

 

                Liv’s day flew by yet again. Still no text from Bucky, but she wasn’t getting worried. He was on a mission after all, not going grocery shopping. She was (happily) learning a lot from Maria and Sam, so much so that the latter suggested she pursue a career in the medical field, even if it was at the tower. Later that evening, Liv found herself considering it. She enjoyed it, so far but she had no practical experience. She was pretty sure blood didn’t make her nauseous and she found comfort in being helpful and useful. She was still thinking about it when she finally crawled into bed, Finn jumping up to lay at her feet. This was something she could talk to Bruce about when everyone got back, Liv decided as she closed her eyes.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In which some shit goes down and life hits Liv in the face with a shovel.

“Miss, I need you to wake up. Ms. Hill needs you in the med lab in 10 minutes.” FRIDAY’s voice bellowed through her bedroom. Liv sat up, still groggy and looked over at her phone on the charger.

                “FRIDAY, it’s 3am. What’s going on?”

                “You need to be in the med lab, Miss. Now.”

That was enough for Liv. She jumped up and threw a bra on under her tank and slipped her feet into her sneakers. It seemed like an emergency, she didn’t think Maria would mind if she was still in pajama pants and a tank.

                “Stay here Finn, I’ll be back soon, ok?” she crooned at her dog, who had barely lifted his head.

Liv ran down the hall to the elevator, which had never opened so slowly. The ride a few floors up seemed to take forever, but she was met right off the elevator by Sam and Clint, which did not seem like a good sign.

                “Hey kid,” Clint began, “Are you ready for this?”

                “Ready for what, all FRIDAY said was that Maria wanted me here in 10 minutes. What happened, what’s going on?”

                “shit,” he muttered under his breath. “Ok, how much do you know about the mission they were all on?”

Liv’s stomach dropped into her heels and her mouth completely dried out. No. Please no.

                “A little. I don’t know where or who or why, but Bucky did tell me there was another base nearby where they were that Steve wanted to clear, so he’d be late coming back. Are they ok?” Her skin was turning pale, even more than usual.

                “They’re going to be ok, cupcake, alright?” Sam reassured her, “OK? Remember that part.”

                “Clint. What happened.”

The three of them headed down the hallway toward the med lab while Clint filled her in.

                “There was another base, but it wasn’t as simple as clearing it. HYDRA knew we were coming. They barely made it out of there alive. Bruce had to go Code Green. They’ll be here in 30 minutes and Maria is scrambling to get enough hands in the med labs to take care of everyone.”  
Liv took a deep breath and steadied herself. You wanted practical experience, she thought, here it goes.

                “Who got hurt, how bad and where do you need me?” she asked him, bracing herself.

He could see she was trying to stay calm, and he respected that. She had a lot of grit. Sam moved past them into another lab bay and Clint put his hands on her shoulders.

                “Nat took a hit in the arm for Wanda, but they’re both ok. Tony and Vision are fine, and Bruce is recovering, Cap got hit in the leg, but he’ll be ok too. He could have been much worse if Bucky wasn’t there.” He paused.

                “Clint?” she looked at him, afraid to ask.

                “Yeah kid, he got hit. From what Vision is saying, Bucky took a bullet in his side and some shrapnel in his leg. They’re on their way here. You can come with me to help with Nat or go with Sam. Bucky is going to Maria.”

                “Which med bay is Maria in?” she said, voice like steel.

Clint looked at her, measuring her up.

                “She’s in 4.”

                “Ok then. I’ll be in 4.” Liv stalked off, heart pounding. He was coming back, bloody. But he was coming back. She squared her shoulders and headed into med bay 4. Maria looked up as she walked in, took one look at Liv’s face and started to tell her exactly what to do to prep for this.

                “Hopefully you won’t need to be here long, just enough to stabilize him. I’m waiting on the med teams to show up,” Maria commented.

Liv just nodded. She was trying to busy herself with getting the right supplies in the right places. Her heart was pounding in her ears, but her hands were steady. She was terrified, but calm and determined. Once they got everything set up, there was an eerie quiet that settled over everything for a solid minute then all hell broke loose. The quinjet landed, Vision and Tony were helping Steve and Nat out, Bruce fumbled out on his own and Sam went with Clint to bring Bucky in on a stretcher. Liv watched them as they walked out with him and looked up to find Steve’s eyes on her. She gave him a quick nod and followed Sam.

                Once into the med lab Maria and Liv worked like maniacs to get everything done that needed to get done before the med teams showed up. It was chaos, but Liv followed Maria’s every word and Bucky was stabilized by the time they showed up minutes later. Liv would have sworn it was hours. She was quickly ushered out and found herself standing just behind Wanda, watching as Steve got his wound stitched.

                “This was a deep one,” Sam mused, “I’ve never had to sew you up before.” Sam finished the last stitch and helped Steve swing his leg over the table. Steve was about to reply when he looked up and saw Liv, with her blank face and blood everywhere.

                “oh god,” he whispered, “did he make it?”

She nodded. Her voice didn’t seem to work right just yet. She could feel the heat in her face and the tears forming, so she swallowed hard, hoping she could keep calm.  She took a deep breath and looked at Sam.

                “Is Nat ok? Where else do you need me?”

They all watched as she squared her shoulders and fought back the fear in her eyes. Steve nodded admirably as he saw her determination shine through.

                “Nat’s fine, she’s had much worse. Why don’t you go get cleaned up and come back down in a bit? I’m sure they’ll have more information by then.”  
                “I’ll stay. I don’t want to be far. Wanda, can you go check on Finn? I left him in the apartment.”

Wanda nodded and with a glance at Steve and Sam, she squeezed Liv’s arm and walked off. With one last check to make sure they didn’t need her anywhere else, Liv made her way to the bathroom to try and wash the blood off her hands and arms. It wasn’t until she looked in the mirror did she realize how bad it looked. There was blood from her hands to her elbows, the top of her thighs was splattered but her tank top had the worst of it. It was covered from her chest down. No use in trying to do anything now, it was mostly dried. Liv pumped cleanser into her hands and lathered up, trying not to think of everything she’d seen. The cut in his thigh was so deep, and the wounds in his side were deceptively serious.

Suddenly, looking at the water in the sink turn red from her hands she lost it. Everything came flooding out. She leaned over the sink as sobs wracked her body, barely gasping for air. Tears poured out of her eyes, clouding her vision. She gripped the side of the sink and forced herself to stand up a little straighter and look in the mirror, willing her breath to slow down. She took a few shakier breaths and finished washing her hands. She needed to focus. It was going to be a long day and she had to be ready if Maria needed her again. Liv walked back out into the hallway, going past Tony as he was talking on his phone to Pepper.

                “All I’m saying is, we need to think about having at least one full time staff member for the med lab in the building. How was something this big overlooked?” He paused as he saw Liv go by him, looking eerily calm. “Pep, I gotta go. I’ll call you back” turned to follow her.

                “Hey kid, Maria tells me you were great in there. Why don’t you go back up and get some sleep, ok? We’ll monitor him.”  
                “no, I’m fine” she monotoned.

                “Liv. Olivia. You need rest. Your adrenaline is going to wear off any minute and it’s almost 5am. Go get rest. Steve will be the first one to call you.”

                “No. I’m staying with him. If I get tired, I’ll sleep in the chair by the bed. Besides, don’t you and Steve and the team need to debrief or whatever the word is? I’ll stay.”

Tony stopped and watched her exhausted figure as she walked into Bucky’s med bay. Liv was just as stubborn as anyone else on this team, so it was no wonder she fit in so well. She was right about one thing though. He needed to meet with the rest of the team and figure out what the hell went so wrong.

                Up on the top floor, Tony paced around the table where Vision, Wanda, Nat, and Bruce were all seated. Nat was staring off at the wall while Bruce was preoccupied with something on the table in front of him. Vision looked over the mission reports and Wanda stared at Nat. Tony turned to say something to Vision as Steve burst in.

                “I won’t be here long, I’ve got to get back down to the med bay in case Buck wakes up. I don’t want things going sideways if he wakes up alone and doesn’t recognize where he is for a minute.”

                “Excuse me? I think it’s a little more important to figure out why he ended up there in the first place than sitting next to him and watching him sleep,” Tony blustered.

                “Tony-“ Bruce started.

                “Stark, I don’t expect you to understand-“ Steve started.

                “STEVE. Stop. He’ll be fine,” interrupted Nat, finally looking at the people seated with her.

                “We don’t know that, Natasha,” Steve pushed.

                “Liv is with him. He’s not alone,” Wanda volunteered, “Tony watched her go in to him.”

Steve’s face softened. He had no idea that Liv and Bucky meant this much to each other already, but that must be a good thing. Especially if she could see him for who he is, not who he was. He relaxed knowing that he had someone familiar near him.

                “Alright. I’ll go check on him after we’re through,” he agreed while sitting next to Wanda, “Vision, what have you got?”

 

 

When Steve finally made his way back down the med bay, it was almost noon. Bucky was still out, which was no surprise, but his vitals were holding steady. Liv was leaning over the armrest of the chair she had dragged closer to his bed, and was holding his hand while they both slept, still in the blood-spattered clothes from the early morning. He had brought a change of clothes for Buck when he woke up, but he had no idea Liv hadn’t even gone back up to her apartment. She’d been down here the whole time, watching over his best friend. Liv shifted slightly in her sleep and opened her eyes, noticing him standing there.

                “Steve, hey. He hasn’t woken up yet. They said he’ll be ok, but they think his body might be in a sort of shut down mode to heal quicker. He lost a lot of blood,” she stretched, sitting up.

                “That’s normal. Liv, have you been down here the whole time?” Steve prodded, “Have you eaten at all?”

                “No, actually. I don’t even know what time it is. I knew you all had information to sift through and I wasn’t doing anything and…. I really didn’t want him to be alone” she whispered, looking over to Bucky’s sleeping face, “I didn’t want him to be nervous when he woke up, in case he didn’t recognize the room.”

Steve was amazed. She understood more than he would have thought. Steve watched Liv’s face as she brushed the hair away from Bucky’s forehead and made sure the blankets were covering him before sitting back down. She reached over to grab his hand as she did, never letting him go. Steve set the clothes down on the table next to the other wall and turned to look at Liv again. She looked exhausted.

“Liv. Go upstairs and take a shower. Get some food, change your clothes. I’ll be here with him. If you want, you can even come back, and we can sit together. But I’m telling you now, as a friend, go.”  
                She hesitated. She did need a shower and her stomach was starting to rumble. Plus, Finn needed to go out, he had probably torn through three toys by this point. But she wanted to be there when he opened his eyes. She looked over at Steve, who was staring her down.

                “OK. I won’t be long. Do you need me to bring you anything when I come back?”  
                “No, I’ll be fine. Just go,” he said with a half-smile. Liv stretched again and nodded, unfolding herself from the chair. “I’ll be back in a bit” she said over her shoulder.

Walking through her door, FRIDAY chimed at her before she had gotten all the way through.

                “Hello Miss. I have a message from Mr. Barton.”

                “Oh, thanks FRIDAY. Go ahead and play it,” she intoned as she kicked her shoes off, heading to the bathroom.

               

                _Hey kid. Just wanted to let you know, Finn is up on the upper levels with us. Wanda thought it might be easier for you, and since he’s got food up here and toys we didn’t see a difference. Glad Steve kicked you out for a bit. Get cleaned up, we’ve got food up here for you if you want it._

Liv smiled at that. It was nice to know they had thought about Finn for her. Turning the hot water on and stripping her clothes off, she decided she might go upstairs for a bit and eat. Mainly because she wasn’t even sure if she had decent food in her fridge right now.

 

45 minutes later, cleaned and changed with her bloody clothes disposed of, Liv was headed back up to the Avenger’s common room. She could hear them laughing at something as soon as the door opened, which made her flinch. How could they laugh when Bucky was a few floors away, unconscious? That feeling evaporated when she turned the corner and realized what they were laughing at. Clint was attempting to teach Finn how to shake and Finn refused to raise his paw, instead resting his jowly face on Clint’s outstretched hand. The lesson was clearly over, since Finn had noticed Liv walking into the room and went bounding over, running little circles around her. She knelt and buried her face in his neck for a minute, getting her bearings. She knew they’d all be looking at her when she stood up and she wasn’t sure if she was ready.

                “Pepper had food delivered,” Wanda volunteered, breaking the silence, “Are you hungry?”

                “Starving,” Liv confessed, standing up. “I haven’t eaten since yesterday. Did Steve eat? I can bring something to him when I go back down.”

Sam looked at her. “Go back down? Steve’s there, you don’t need to.”

                “Yes, I do” she answered quietly and walked over with Wanda to get some food.

20 minutes later with a full stomach and a small bag in her hand, she was headed back down to the med labs. She knew if there was a major change that Steve would have told her, so she wasn’t expecting anything different as she walked into Bucky’s med bay. Steve looked up as she walked in, surprised.

                “You were barely gone an hour!”

Liv smiled. “I know, but I showered, changed and ate so you can’t kick me out again. I even brought you food,” she said, holding up the bag.

                “Alright, I surrender,” Steve chuckled. He stood up to make room at the table. He had left the chair Liv was in close to the bed and had opted to sit in the chair nearest to the table instead. She immediately went over to Bucky after placing the bag on the table and placed her hand in his, giving it a small squeeze.

                “Hey, Bucky. I’m back, ok?” she whispered softly, settling back in to the chair at his side. Steve very gallantly pretended not to notice a thing as he unpacked his food and sat down to eat. He really hoped that Bucky cared about this girl as much as she clearly cared about him or there would be a nasty broken heart in the tower.

                “What...is this a pack of cards?” he asked, pulling it out of the bag.

                “Oh yeah, I forgot about that. Wanda thought we could use something to keep us occupied, I guess. I don’t know many card games though.” She replied, never taking her eyes off Bucky.

                “We could play a couple hands of something when I finish eating, if you’d like. We can even just play Go Fish,” he offered. “Liv?”

                “Hmm? Oh, yeah, that sounds good. Let me just text Wanda to bring down my sweatshirt. I forgot how chilly it was in here.”

                “Here, wear this,” Steve offered, pulling a flannel shirt from the pile of clothes he had brought down for Bucky, “I thought I grabbed a shirt, turns out I grabbed 3. I don’t think he’ll mind. You can always go grab your own shirt later.”

                “Thanks Steve,” she replied, pulling it on. It was nice and warm and smelled like Bucky. Liv buttoned a few buttons in the middle and pushed up the sleeves a bit. Then she settled back into the chair, holding on to Bucky and waited for Steve to finish.

 

It was long into the night before Steve realized neither one of them had eaten for hours. Tony had brought in a nurse for the night to check Bucky’s vitals, so he had flitted in and out a few times during the day. After a few rounds of cards and Steve telling Liv a few Bucky stories, Liv fell asleep again in the chair, holding his hand. Her stomach rumbled in her sleep, but she didn’t seem to notice. Steve noticed he was pretty hungry too, so he decided to pop upstairs and grab them something quick to eat before sending Liv up to her floor for some rest. She couldn’t spend this whole time sleeping in a chair. A few minutes after Steve had walked out, Liv felt a small squeeze. Sitting up, she looked over to Bucky, who still had his eyes shut. Maybe she imagined it.

 

No there it was again!

 

He did squeeze her hand. It was light, but it was there. She turned to say something to Steve, but he had already left. She sat up straighter, looking at Bucky, willing him to wake up. What was she going to say to him when he opened his eyes?

She heard a soft moan. Bucky was starting to come around, but his eyes were still closed. She realized she was still holding his hand, so she gave it a soft squeeze and she felt pressure back. Liv kept looking over to the door, expecting Steve to walk in any moment. She had a small “duh” moment.

                “FRIDAY?” she whispered.

                “Yes Miss,” came the soft reply.

                “Can you tell Capt. Rogers to get back down here ASAP? He’s waking up.”

                “Oh course Miss. I believe he’s getting in to the elevator now.”

Liv sighed. He was only a few minutes away from walking in, then. She pressed the call button on his bedside to alert the nurse on duty and kept watching his face. Moments later she heard Steve rush in behind her.

                “Is he awake yet? Did you call the nurse?”

                “He’s not up yet, but I think he’s close,” she ventured, “I just hit the call button, the nurse should be here any minute.”

They both watched as Bucky shifted slightly in the bed and moaned softly again. Liv let go of his hand as the nurse walked in and immediately went to work, checking his pulse and other instruments around the room.

                “Yup, looks like our Sleeping Beauty is about to wake up,” confirmed the nurse.                 

Bucky groaned.

                “C’mon Buck” muttered Steve.

Liv stood off to the side, watching. Her heart was pounding, and she thought she would cry with relief. Bucky started to open his eyes and look around a bit, trying to speak. Liv walked over with a small cup of water and held it to his lips. Bucky looked up and smiled, but she wasn’t sure he really saw her. He still seemed groggy.

                “Hey” he croaked.

                “Hey yourself” she smiled. Steve grinned. The nurse confirmed that he was coming out of it, but the medication might make him a little woozy for the next few hours. Steve stepped forward to Bucky.

                “Hey Buck, about time you woke up. Didn’t sleep enough before?” he joked.

                “Steve? Where am I? What day is it?” Bucky groaned, trying to sit up.

                “Slow down, you’re in the med lab. Everything is fine. You were barely out for a day.”

                “Ok, well, I might close my eyes again for a minute.” He whispered. Steve looked to the nurse. He nodded, it was normal. Bucky would wake up fully in an hour or two. Steve turned to say something to Liv, but she was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going away for the weekend, but I'll try to upload a chapter a day. Love you guys!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is do much fluff it's gonna give you cavities.

As soon as the nurse made a mention that he was going to be woozy for a few hours, she decided that maybe it was best he spend the time waking up with Steve, he was more familiar to him than she was. And he probably needed more rest. She went upstairs quickly, finding Wanda on the couch reading with Finn next to her, she told her Bucky was awake and called to Finn.   
  
                “Liv. Why aren’t you down there with him?” Wanda was confused. She spent hours down there, she helped stitch him back up so why bow out now?  
  
                “Steve is with him. He’s going to be really groggy for a while and I don’t want to be in the way,” Liv lied, heading toward the door with Finn. Wanda gave her a hard look.   
  
                [“Bullshit. Do](http://%E2%80%9CBullshit.Do) I need to remind you that I can get inside your head? Because I will.”  
  
                “Ok, first off, rude,” retorted Liv, “But there’s nothing else to figure out. Stop looking at me like that.”   
  
                “Liv.”  
  
                “What.”  
  
                “LIV.”  
  
                “UGH FINE.” Liv caved, “I’m pretty sure I’m developing stronger feelings for him than he’d have for me, so I didn’t to be all weird and all ‘hey, I held your hand for hours and hours while you were sleeping, some of them covered in you blood because I really like you and I watched you while you slept’. Nope, not weird at all.”  
  
Wanda stared at her. “OK. So. That was a lot. Maybe don’t start with that information when you see him again.”   
  
Liv laughed. “Exactly. I’m just going to go back to my place with Finn, take a shower and get some rest. I’ll stop in to see him in the morning.”   
  
  
   
  
   
(BUCKY POV)  
  
                Bucky’s eyes felt like weights were attached, but he managed to pry them open a bit. Everything looked like there was a film over it. He tried to speak but nothing was happening, and suddenly there was water when he needed it. He looked up. Liv? Was that her? He relaxed a bit. If his girl was there, then it wasn’t that bad. Wait, his girl? When did he start thinking like that? Not that it mattered because it felt right, and he was glad she was there.   
  
                “Hey,” he managed.   
  
                “Hey yourself,” came her voice. Yup, that was his Liv. Then Steve said something, and there seemed to be someone else in the room and Bucky started to feel veerrryy sleepy again. He mumbled something and closed eyes again. Everything went back.   
  
                It seemed like a minute went by when he opened them again but this time, things seemed clear and he already felt better. He looked over, seeing Steve at the table near him.   
  
                “Steve?” Bucky rasped.   
  
                “Hey Buck. Nice of you to join us again,” Steve said, striding over to his bedside.   
  
                “What time is it?”  
  
                “It’slate Buck. Probably around midnight.”   
  
                “Is everyone else ok?” Bucky had seen Nat take a hit and he knew Hulk had made an appearance.   
  
                “Yeah, Buck. They’re all ok.”   
  
Bucky glanced behind Steve. The room was empty. He could have sworn….  
  
                “Have you been here the whole time? I thought..” he mused.  
  
Steve looked down at him, eyes slightly narrowed.   
  
                “Yes and no. I had to meet with the team before hand and I needed a bullet dug out of my leg right when we got back but I was here with you for most of it. You weren’t alone though. Liv was here the whole time. Maria had her help patch you up before the medics showed up and she stayed in here right after that for quite a while until I kicked her out. Her clothes still had your blood on them,”  he explained.  
  
                “oh, ok. I thought I saw her. I must have been dreaming.”  
  
                “No, Buck. You weren’t. She came back an hour later after I kicked her out and stayed the whole time, until you woke up. Wanda says she went up to get Finn and went back to her place. Something about not wanting to get in the way. Buck, she never left your side. She even held your hand the whole time.”   
  
Bucky stared at Steve.   
  
                “I’ve gotta go see her,” he grunted, pushing himself up, “I have to tell her-“  
  
                “Whoa whoa whoa! You’re not going anywhere,” Steve interjected, “Aside from the fact that it’s midnight and she’s most likely sleeping, do you even know what you’re going to say? Or were you just going to go running in there half-cocked and sputter some nonsense? And I’m not even mentioning that you need more rest. Captain’s orders.”  
  
                Bucky sat back. Steve had a point. He had no idea what exactly he was going to say.That he thought of her as his girl? Was that even a thing anymore? Or how about the fact that he was more concerned about disappointing her and not coming back than he was about almost bleeding out. Things were different with Liv. With her he was just Bucky. Not the Winter Soldier, not a deadly assassin, not even an Avenger, he was just a guy.   
  
                “Steve, where do I even start?” Bucky looked over. “How do I say everything to her?”   
  
                “You could start with the fact that you’ve felt this way forever but move slower than molasses in January, so you only just now decided to do something about it and how almost everyone has known except the two of you,” Steve offered, looking back down at his cards on the table.   
  
                “What-I…but…. how did…,” he glared at Steve, “shut up.”  
  
                “Honestly Buck, I think we need some backup here. I’m calling in reinforcements,” Steve decided, pulling out his phone. Bucky wasn’t entirely sure this was going theway he planned.   
  
  
   
(BACK TO LIV POV)  
  
                Liv sat up quickly, wide awake. She glanced over at her clock and groaned. Just after 3am. Her internal alarm must be all screwy with yesterday’s event. Was it only yesterday? It seemed like 5 minutes ago and a week at the same time. Sighing, she pushed her blankets off and swung her legs over the side of the bed. Finn didn’t even move, snoring softly in his bed. Might as well get up, she thought, padding over to the bathroom.   
  
                A few minutes later Liv found herself in the elevator, still clad in her pajamas and wrapped in a small flannel blanket. She had realized she still had Bucky’s shirt from the night before and figured she could slip in to his med bay and replace it while he was still asleep. Most of the hall lights were off and the one on-call night nurse was asleep at the desk by the entrance. Liv walked silently in and down the hall to Bucky’s room peering in to see him still laying on the bed. Easy, she thought. She’d walk in, put the shirt on the table, and walk out. Just as she was fully in the room, Bucky’s eyes opened.   
  
                He gave her a small smile. “Hey,” he whispered.   
  
                “Hey yourself,” she smiled back. “How are you feeling?”  
  
                “Better. I’ll probably be out of here tomorrow,” he said, pulling himself to a sitting position.   
  
                “Really? That’s great Bucky!” she smiled as she looked over to him. Liv almost completely forgot her train of thought as she realized Bucky was watching her intently.  
  
                “I, um...I brought your shirt back. I thought you’d be asleep, so...” she babbled.   
  
He smirked. “So, you thought you’d sneak in here without me knowing and bring back the shirt I didn’t realize you had?”   
  
                “No! I mean, yes, but not like that. I was getting cold when I was here with you. And Steve! Steve was here too. And I was cold. So, he gave me your shirt because he brought extras by accident. And then I accidentally took it to bed. My bed. NOT like my bed bed, but I fell asleep in it. It smells like you. Not that I was smelling it! I just noticed. WHY ARE YOU STILL LETTING ME TALK?!” she wailed. Bucky was just laughing, clearly enjoying it.   
  
                “Ohmygod, here’s your shirt, I gotta go,” she squeaked, dropping the shirt on the table and starting to bolt out the door.   
  
                “Liv! Wait,” he shouted after her. She turned slowly and walked a step back into theroom, not looking at him.   
  
                “Can you stay for a while? I’ve been up for a bit and I hate being here alone. I promise I won’t tease anymore,” he swore, “Please?”   
  
She hesitated for a minute, then turned back to the room.   
  
                “Ok. I’ll stay for a little. Besides, you promised me a new story,” she bargained. Bucky laughed and nodded.   
  
                “That’s a deal.”   
  
Liv started to pull the chair back over to his bedside, trying to juggle her blanket at the same time.   
  
                “What are you doing? Just sit here,” he patted the foot of his bed. Liv looked over, and then back at the chair. The bed did look infinitely more comfortable. She let go of the chair and walked over, hopping up on to the bed. Wrapping the blanket around herself, she settled down.   
  
                “So,” she said, “Tell me a story.”   
  
Bucky spent the next hour or so telling Liv all about how the mission was and how everything was going fine until the last base. It was a total ambush. He started going in to more detail when she stopped him.   
  
                “I’m pretty sure I specifically said to be safe,” she half-teased.   
  
He smiled at her. “I know. It usually doesn’t go this badly.” She started to reply and suddenly yawned.   
  
                “Wow, sorry.” Her internal alarm being out of whack was doing a number on her.  
  
                “Sure, sure. My stories about being in mortal danger just aren’t as good as you’d thought they’d be. Either that or you just weren’t that upset when I came back in pieces,” he joked.   
  
                “Don’t say that,” she whispered. She looked down, feeling the heat creep into her face.   
  
                “Hey, Liv,” he ventured softy, “I didn’t mean it. I know you were here. I know you helped.”  
  
                “Bucky, I had no idea what to expect. And then you showed up, bleeding and broken and I forgot that you could heal faster than I can. All I could see was the blood and your face,” she rasped, her voice cracking.   
  
                “Shh,i it’s ok. I’m ok now,” he crooned, pulling her closer to him, “Everything is ok.I heard about how you were in here. Steve heard Maria say you had nerves of steel.” He wrapped his arms around her and kept her close to him, pressing his lips to her hair.   
  
                “Bucky, I thought I lost you. I mean, I thought we lost you. All of us.” She could feel the red creeping further up on her neck and ears.   
  
He felt his chest tighten and remembered how he thought of her as his girl when he woke up. Not sure of how to start what he wanted to say, he just held her close and stroked her hair, planting whispers of a kiss on the top of her head. They stayed that way for a while, until Bucky took a deep breath.   
  
                “Liv, I….Liv?“ he started, and realized she had fallen asleep on his chest, curled up on the bed next to him. He chuckled to himself. Everything felt right in his world with her right there, even if he was in a hospital bed. Bucky shifted over a bit and closed his eyes, holding on to his girl.   
  
  
   
                Steve found them there a while later, curled up with each other in his hospital bed.He had gone down to check on Bucky before breakfast and smiled at his discovery. He snapped a picture with his phone, sending it to Natasha.   
  
                “She’s gonna love this,” he grinned. He backed out of the room, this time enteringwith a loud cough, enough to wake Liv up. She sat up with a start. Looking down, seeing Bucky’s arms around her she looked over at Steve, who was grinning at her. Liv immediately turned a fantastic shade of crimson. Bucky was sitting forward, moving his arms away reluctantly, hiding a smile.   
  
                “Hey Steve.”  
  
                “Heyyy Buck.”   
  
                “Soo… I gotta go and check on Finn,” Liv stammered. She eased herself away from Bucky and went to rush out but felt him reach out and grab her hand.   
  
                “Come back, ok?” he asked softly. She took a step back and squeezed his hand.   
  
                “I will. I told you I wasn’t going anywhere, didn’t I?” she whispered back.   
  
Liv walked out with a small smile, brushing past Steve and heading to the elevator.   
  
                Steve turned back to Bucky with a grin.   
  
                “Think I should’ve told her that Finn is upstairs with Clint?”  
  
  
   
Liv walked in to her apartment to find it empty and another message from Clint.   
  
  
   
                _Hey kid. We dognapped Finn. We all decided he’s the team mascot and nobody wants to hear arguing from you. Take a nap, eat some food and for god’s sake take a shower._  
  
 She laughed, stretching. A shower sounded amazing and some food couldn’t hurt either. She walked to her room, kicking off her shoes. Then she stopped, starting giggling to herself. It just hit her where she had woken up and just who she had woken up with. It was so short, but it felt perfect being next to him like that. She felt safe for the first time in years.   
  
                An hour later she was heading up to the common room to check on her dog (even though she knew she really didn’t need to). Smiling to herself as she stepped out of the elevator, she could hear laughter as she rounded the corner. Wanda and Clint had Finn in a repurposed Stark Industries t-shirt and were taking dozens of pictures.   
  
                “What have you done to my boy?” she laughed, walking over. Finn let out a happy bark, clearly loving all the attention. Liv walked over and sat down next to Clint.   
  
                “Seriously though, thank you for watching him. I’ve been a bad dog mommy lately.”  
                “Didn’t I tell you to take a nap? Oh wait, or did you get enough of a nap earlier,” he teased. Liv turned deep red.   
  
                “How did you even know I wasn’t in my room?” she hissed  
  
                “FRIDAY. Plus, the night nurse is a gossip.”   
  
                “ohmygod," she groaned, trying to sink into the couch.   
  
                “Relax kid. You’re both adults. Nobody cares, ok? Except Wanda. And Steve. Oh, andNatasha. And Tony. And probably Vision. Maybe Sam. But other than that, you’re fine.”  
  
She gave him a level stare and very quietly said “You suck.”


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a little bit of a filler, but also advances things along nicely. Enjoy!

The next day or so was a serious break from the normal routine, in terms of classes and training for the team, but by the second day Bucky was back upstairs with everyone completely healed (for the most part.) On this particular day, Wanda was in the kitchen with Vision and Clint, while Bucky was playing with Finn on the floor by the couches. Liv was at a table with Steve, looking through his sketch book with him.

                “Steve, you’re really talented,” Liv was amazed. “These are so good!” She couldn’t decide which was her favorite. There was a beautiful sketch of the skyline, and then another of Time’s Square. One of a little coffee shop in Little Italy, and Steve had even done one of Finn watching out the windows of the tower with the city faintly in the background.

                “Oh, you might like some of these too,” he remembered, pulling out another small portfolio.

Steve had done sketches of almost everyone on the team and Liv looked through them one by one with a small smile. There was one a Natasha cleaning her weapons and Wanda smiling with Clint. He had done a very detailed one of Bruce in the lab, hunched over some specs. The one of Tony sprawled out on the floor, asleep and drooling surrounded by gadgets was hysterically funny, and she started to laugh until she shifted to the next one and let out a small gasp. There he was. Bucky, looking off into space with steel in his eyes. He was beautiful and breathtaking, and she touched the cheek of the picture before she realized what she was doing. Snatching her hand away, she shifted to another picture of Wanda, this time with Vision. Liv looked over at Steve from the corner of her eyes and was relieved to see he was distracted by Wanda trying to kick Vision out of the kitchen.

                “Oh look, it’s the family all together,” Liv heard from down the hallway. Tony Stark appeared, straightening the cufflinks on his shirt. “Good to see that you’re all enjoying the downtime, I doubt anyone from HYDRA has been.”

                “Tony, Bucky needed recuperating and it wouldn’t kill everyone to get a little rest. Besides, not everyone here is an Avenger,” he pointed out, eyeing Liv. “And you know she’s earned it.”

                “Fine, fine.” He muttered, walking over to look at the drawings, “Cap. Stitches.” He nodded at Steve & Liv as he glanced at the drawings. Liv glanced at Steve. _Stitches?_ She mouthed? Steve nodded over to where Bucky was sitting. Ohhh, she thought. He knew she had sewed up Bucky’s wounds with Maria. Of course he'd give her a dumb nickname based on that. Tony turned to walk back out, the spun around at the last minute.

                “Oh, by the way- Stitches? Stevie Nicks?” he called over to Liv and Wanda, “You do know classes start back up again day after tomorrow, so get some sleep my little undergrads.” Tony heard their small groans as he walked down the hall, chuckling to himself.

 

       Liv watched the incoming snow on the weather report in her pajamas as she sipped her coffee, getting ready for Wanda to come down to her apartment for another finals cram session in an hour. They were 3 days away from their semester finals, and they were nervous. Neither one needed to be, but there was still anxiety anyway. It was a final, who wouldn’t be nervous? Wanda knocked about 5 minutes later, also still in pajamas and holding an arm full of books.

                “Hey!” she breezed in, “You ready?”

                “As ready as I’ll ever be,” Liv replied, setting her cup down on the coffee table, “There’s coffee on the counter.” Wanda set the books down on the table by Liv and headed over to the kitchen area. She had been to Liv’s apartment enough that she knew where everything is well enough. By the time Wanda had turned back, Liv had already arranged the books on the table. She turned and smiled.

                “Ok girl, let’s get started.”

 

                Monday morning, Liv woke up 10 minutes before her alarm. Her stomach felt like it was full of drunk butterflies. Finals. She lay there, scratching Finn behind the ears and staring at her ceiling until she decided to jump in the shower. A few minutes later, she was toweling off her hair when she heard a knock at the door.

                “What the fu-“ she muttered, wrapping an oversized towel around herself.

Opening her door, she was amazed to find Bucky standing there, holding coffee and Finn’s spare leash.

                “Hey, I brought you coffee…” he trailed off, noticing what she was wearing (or not wearing). She looked amazing, he thought. She hadn’t dried herself off completely and she looked like she was covered in morning dew. Her collarbone was still wet, and Bucky followed a little drop of water with his eyes as it slipped down her chest and under the towel. He snapped his head up, turning red.

                “I..um.. I thought you might like coffee again, like last time and I could walk Finn for you, so you can relax before your tests,” he stammered, looking everywhere but at Liv.

                “Thank you, Bucky,” she blushed. She became acutely aware of her towel and how her stomach flipped when he looked her, which was something that she hadn’t felt in years. She opened the door a little wider to let him step inside. 

                “Finn! Bucky is here!” she called, and the dog came bounding in happily from the bedroom. Bucky managed to set the coffee down on a table just in time as Finn jumped up at him.

                “Hey buddy,” Bucky laughed, “ready to go?” and clipped his leash on. “I’ll take him right upstairs after, don’t worry.”

                “Ok, well…thank you. And thank you for the coffee again. That was really sweet.” She smiled at him.

Bucky ducked his head, smiling. He was glad he remembered on his own, without Steve to remind him. He headed toward the door with Finn but turned around like he forgot something.

                “Hey Liv? You’re going to do great today.”

She blushed again. “Thanks Bucky.” He smiled and, pulling Finn with him and shutting the door behind them.

Liv stood in her kitchen, staring at the door. He remembered her favorite coffee again. He could barely remember his own past and he remembered her favorite coffee. And thought to take care of Finn for her. Picking up the coffee she smiled and headed into her room to get dressed.

 

                Steve walked in to the common area after a training session with Natasha to find Bucky pacing the floor, scowling and clenching his right fist.

                “Buck? What’s wrong, what happened?” he started, “Did you remember something?”

                “What? No. It’s nothing like that.” Bucky muttered, still moving.

                “O…k,” Steve began, “Then what is it. Is it Liv?”

                “Yes! I mean no. I mean, not exactly. It’s just….”

                “What, Buck”

                “She’s been in there for hours! She’s been so nervous about this and it’s taking forever!” he thundered.

Steve took a step back, trying to hide a smile.

                “Buck, it’s a biology final, with a lab practical. That’s basically 2 tests. You do realize that the test I have for them is about 2 hours long, right?”

                “WHAT?!” he shouted. Finn snapped his head up from the couch and whined.

                “Buck! Keep your voice down!” Steve admonished. “She doesn’t have to take the full 2 hours! And she’ll be great. Just be supportive when she gets out of that lab.” Steve led him over to the couch and sat him down next to Finn. “Now, have you picked out something for the party Tony is throwing for the girls? I heard Nat saying she’s going to take them shopping tomorrow.”

                “No, Steve, I have no idea how to dress for that sort of thing anymore. Can’t I just make an appearance and leave?”

                “Ok. But you need to be the one to tell Liv that you’re not coming to her party.”

Bucky groaned. There was no way in hell he’d do that. She’d be so upset, even though she’d never let him know. In fact, she’d probably so be understanding about the whole thing that she’d offer to convince Tony to cancel the whole party. He shivered. Just thinking about it him made him feel guilty. No, he’d go, even if it was only for an hour or two. At least she had convinced Tony to scale back the invite list, since he also wanted to throw a New Year’s Eve party.

                “Fine,” Bucky exhaled, “what am I supposed to wear to this shindig?”

 

 

Liv and Wanda emerged from the labs a little while later, smiling and feeling much lighter. They were done with biology (for now) until after the New Year! The two girls walked into the common room, empty except for Finn snoring in his dog bed. Falling into the couches, they looked at each other and started laughing.

                “Oh my god Wanda, why were we so nervous!?” Liv laughed.

                “I have no idea,” the younger woman laughed back, “Bruce was such a great teacher, we were totally prepared.”

Just then, Natasha walked in with Clint.

                “So? How’d it go?” she inquired, walking over to sit by the girls.

                “Yeah kid,” Clint spoke up, “fully understand the innerworkings of the human body now?”

Wanda snorted while Liv threw her head back, laughing.

                “I don’t know if I’d go that far, but I think we did pretty damn well.”

Nat and Clint smiled. They both liked Liv and enjoyed having her around the tower. Clint wouldn’t mind putting her on the team, in a non-combat role. He was sure Nat would agree with that. Just as Liv was getting comfortable on the couch, joking with Wanda about the lab portion, Steve and Bucky walked in.

                “Ladies, I hope you’re ready for your next exam,” Steve grinned. They fake groaned and Wanda rolled her eyes. They both stood up and headed for the other conference room when Bucky caught up to Liv.

                “Liv! How did the test go?” he asked, jogging over.

                “Hey Bucky! I think it went well. It’s biology though, it was never going to be easy. I’m not a genius like Bruce or Tony, but I mean, I’m not a total idiot either.” She laughed.

Bucky looked in to her eyes and gave her a soft smile.

                “Ok. I just wanted to check. Good luck on Steve’s test,” he said, giving her hand a quick squeeze and walking back to the common room.

Liv turned and walked into the conference room smiling to herself, a sight that was not lost on Steve or Wanda.

Steve’s test was mainly multiple choice and fill in the blank, with a short essay at the end. Wanda finished first and went in to the common area to wait with Bucky and Nat. Liv came out 45 minutes later, looking a little bit frazzled.

                “Liv, what took you so long? Wait, how long was your essay?” Wanda asked, moving over so Liv could sit on the couch next to her.

                “Wanda. I think I over did it,” she deadpanned. Liv ducked her hear into Wanda’s shoulder, “My essay was like, 2 and a half pages.” Wanda started laughing and a moment later Liv joined in.

                “What’s so funny?” Bucky asked, confused.

                “It was only supposed to be half a page!” Liv exclaimed.

Bucky stared at her. “You made it almost 3 pages long?” A smile started to spread across his features. Bucky started laughing with them.

                “What,” deadpanned Nat, “what am I missing?”

                “I don’t know why they’re laughing, but I think it’s funny that Steve has to grade it!”

Natasha just shook her head. These three…

                “Hey you two, don’t forget. We’re going shopping tomorrow for dresses for the party.”

  
                “Nat, I don’t know. Is it that big of a deal? I can’t wear something in my closet?” Liv whined.

                “No, you cannot. And Pepper gave me Tony’s black card so we’re getting the whole 9. Because I said so,” she answered in a voice that broke no argument.

Wanda looked to Liv. “Looks like we’re going shopping. Come up here beforehand, we’ll have breakfast.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll try to keep posting daily, y'all. Thanks for reading!


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's starting to get good...... (yay!)

         The next morning Nat, Liv, and Wanda were full of eggs, bacon, and coffee and were heading out in to the city. They hit up a few stores, with Wanda finding a beautiful velvet dress in emerald green and Natasha snagging a great Marc Jacobs number that was black with red detailing. Liv, however, was having a hard time with anything. She found a few that looked great, but she wasn’t head over heels about. She was getting frustrated until Natasha grabbed their hands, hailed a cab and muttered an address to the driver. Liv looked to Wanda and mouthed _do you know where we’re going?_   Wanda shrugged. A short ride later, the trio was standing in front of New York Vintage, a little high-end boutique filled with vintage couture. Liv was thrilled, and Natasha glanced over at Wanda behind their friend’s back with a sly smile.

The girls entered, and Liv started looking through the racks, loving all the styles. They had everything from flapper style to 60’s style mod dresses and Liv was in heaven. She didn’t get long to browse, however, when Natasha shoved a few dresses in her hands and pushed her into a changing room.

                “Here, try these,” she ordered. Nat and Wanda arranged themselves on the couches, waiting. Liv emerged a moment later in a deep red wiggle dress, clearly uncomfortable.

                “YES!” declared Wanda.

                “No, the color is all wrong on her,” decided Nat, “Next!”

                “well ok then,” muttered Liv as she turned and went to the other dresses.

Next up was a pale yellow 50’s style strapless party dress. The top was lovely raw silk and the bottom was layer upon layer of crinoline. Liv loved it but wasn’t sure if it was the right for the party. Wanda and Natasha agreed. She only had one more and Natasha was already mentally going over other dresses she’d seen in the store for the next round of try-ons until Liv walked out again.

This one was a beautiful dark purple silk, with a trumpet-style skirt that stopped just below her knees. The bias cut in the skirt gave it great movement when she walked, and the neckline was just deep enough that she wasn’t worried about showing everything if she leaned over too far. The elbow length sleeves were a perfect fit. Liv beamed.

                “I love it, it’s perfect!” she squealed.

                “It looks amazing! The color looks soo good on you,” Wanda gushed. They both slid their eyes over expectantly to Nat, who was staring with narrowed eyed.

                “Yup, this is it. This is the dress. Now go get your clothes back on and we’ll get some shoes.”

The girls yelped for joy and Liv hurried back in to change.

Luckily they found some perfect vintage heels at the same store and Wanda found pumps that matched her dress perfectly. (Nat had grabbed a pair of black Louboutins earlier.) The shop clerk at the vintage store directed them to a great vintage jewelry store as well, so off they went. There Liv picked out a 20’s style lily drop necklace for Wanda and matching earrings. Nat went for a simple strand of black pearls and picked out tear-drop shaped diamond earrings for Liv. Nat argued against a necklace for Liv, with the neckline of her dress and the other two eventually agreed. By the time they made it back to the tower, it wasn’t even 1 o’clock.

                The girls stepped off the elevator heading to the common area.

                “Ok, but you’re coming right back up here to get ready, right?” Wanda asked Liv. She had said she needed to take Finn out on her own, she felt really guilty that she hadn’t done it a while.

                “I promise, I’ll jump in the shower when I get back and head right back up here!” Liv assured her.

                They almost ran right in to Steve and Bucky, rounding the other corner.

                “Oh, hey boys!” Liv smiled up at the two of them.

                “How was shopping?” Steve asked, looking down in to the bags she was carrying.

                “Nu-uh, no peeking!” she scolded, twisting the bags behind her back, “You’ll have to wait and see like everyone else!” she said, laughing.

Bucky dipped his head, letting his hair fall over his eyes, trying to disguise his smile. He wasn’t as apprehensive about the party now, since she was so excited.

Wanda came over and rescued Liv’s bags from prying eyes and taking them to her room, since they were getting ready together later.

                “I’ll see you boys later,” Live teased, “I’ve got to take Finn outside and see him a bit before he forgets all about me.”

Watching her walk over to the couch to get her dog and chat with Sam for a minute, Bucky just stared.

                “Like anyone could forget about you,” he murmured under his breath.

                “What was that?” Steve asked, hearing every word.

                “…nothing,” muttered Bucky.

 

A quick jog with Finn and a hot shower later, Liv was headed up to the common room with Finn, who was apparently being dognapped by Clint again (apparently Finn needed to get “party ready”). She walked in to the common room just in time to see Bucky and Natasha whispering in Russian in the corner of the room, stopping and silently watching her walk by.

                o….k….That was weird, she thought as she headed to Wanda’s rooms. Must be assassin stuff, she figured. She walked in to Wanda’s room after a quick knock and quickly forgot about it. 20 minutes later, Nat walked in and the three of them got to work on getting dressed up for a party.

 

After what felt like hours and hours of hair drying, rolling it up in curlers, nail painting and laughing at Nat’s stories of missions with Clint, FRIDAY chimed in to Wanda’s room.               

                “Miss McBride? There is a delivery here for you.”

                “Me? I didn’t order anything.” Liv looked to Wanda and Nat, and they shook their heads.

                “Yes, Miss, but he’s in the main receiving area. If you could meet him there?”

                “Ok…thanks FRIDAY.” Liv headed into the lobby area with Wanda and Nat in tow. She rounded the corner to see a bored, average sized man holding an abnormally sized bouquet of flowers.

                “Olivia McBride?” he asked, looking at his clipboard.

                “That’s me,” squeaked Liv, completely confused.

                “These are for you. Sign here,” he said, shoving the flowers and clipboard into her hands and abruptly walking off after she signed. Liv looked down in to her arms. They were beautiful, at least 3 dozen of them, half red and half white. She pressed her face in to a bunch of white roses and inhaled happily. They smelled divine.

                “Is there a card?” Wanda asked excitedly.

                “Yup, here.” Nat said, already plucking it from a group of red roses. She opened the tiny envelope and handed the card to Liv with a smile.

                _Congratulations on passing your first set of finals, doll!_

_We all knew you could do it._

_~Bucky_

Liv turned 7 shades of red and looked at the girls. Wanda looked like she was going to burst, and Nat was the personification of the cat that ate the canary.

                “Did either of you know about this?” she breathed.

                “No! And you know what,” Wanda looked from the flowers to Liv’s hair currently up in soft curlers, “yeah…that’ll work. Nat?”

Natasha followed Wanda’s eyesight and nodded.

                “Yeah, it’ll look good,” she agreed.

                “Uh…. guys?” Liv started.

Next thing she knew, she was being pulled back in to the hallway and down to Wanda’s room where they finished getting ready.

                Liv slipped her dress on over the vintage-style undergarment and walked to the mirror next to Nat to check out her lines. Wanda stepped out of her bathroom a minute later in her green dress and walked over to the other two. She had left her hair mostly down but pulled up a few of the front pieces with little crystal star pins. Wanda had helped Liv put soft curls in her hair, pinning up the front and letting the rest fall down her back.

                “I’ve got to say, girls,” Nat stated, “We clean up real good.”

                “Wait! I almost forgot!” Wanda practically yelled in Liv’s ear. She flew over to the roses and picked one of the white ones, snipping the bloom off.

                “Nat? Gimme a hand?” She motioned to Liv. Nat took the flower and positioned it so that the petals brushed the skin on the top of her right ear.

                “There,” she murmured, “he’ll love it.”

The three of them turned back to the mirror, smiling at their reflections.

                “You’re right Nat.” Liv grinned, “we do look damn good.”

After a quick picture with Wanda’s phone, they were ready to head out.

 

      Tony had hired a DJ and a bartender, so the music was fun and loud, and the drinks were flowing. He had invited Thor and Jane, Rhodey was there, but Tony had managed to sneak in a handful of other people. Namely other shield agents that knew Wanda and a few that had met Liv once or twice. Dr. Strange was even making an appearance later. Bruce was sitting off to the side, talking with Vision, Thor and Jane while Rhodey, Sam, Clint, and Maria were trading mission stories and Tony was harassing the bartender. Pepper was telling Steve about a new exhibit at the museum she had heard about and Bucky was standing at the end of the bar, watching everyone. He caught a movement out of the corner of his eye. He looked over and froze. The girls were walking in. Nat looked great, as usual and Wanda looked very pretty but his breath caught in his throat when Liv walked in behind them. She looked flawless. Her dress was hugging every curve and the skirt floated around her legs. It reminded him of something…maybe something before the war. Her hair was in chestnut waves and…was that one of his roses? He beamed. She wore one! He was still smiling when Steve looked over, and following his eyesight to Liv, smiled to himself.

                Sam let out a low whistle.

                “Looking good ladies,” he remarked, “Wanda, you look lovely. Nat, you look like you could still kick my ass. Livvie, I love the dress but get a different color next time. You look like a plum,” Sam teased.

                “I like plums,” said Bucky softly, coming up behind Liv. She turned around and beamed up at him and Bucky felt like he was in a ray of sunlight. She touched his arm lightly, pulling away from everyone. They ended up on the other side of the bar, where Bucky leaned on it with his metal arm and Liv stood next to him, looking over at everyone.

                “Thank you for the roses. They were absolutely beautiful. I don’t think I’ve ever gotten so many flowers at once before!” she laughed while ordering a gin & tonic from the bartender.

                “Was it too much? I didn’t know. I couldn’t remember if I ever got flowers for a girl before, and Steve said it would be a good idea-“ he started. Liv placed a hand on his left arm, stopping him. He barely flinched.

                “Bucky, they were perfect,” she reassured him softly. She looked up at him, smiling. He wasn’t what she expected to find here, but she was glad she did. Bucky smiled down at Liv, and for a split second forgot all about HYDRA and losing his arm and everything that happened. He was just a guy standing by a bar with a beautiful girl. They were interrupted, however by a bark and Liv looked over to see Finn running in to the party, complete in doggy tuxedo.

                “Clint!” she exclaimed, “Is this what you meant earlier? He looks so good!!” She bent down, giving him a good head ruffle and straightened up to look at Bucky again. He was holding her gin and tonic for her with a strange expression on his face. She was about to ask him what was going on, but Tony decided to make an announcement.

                “Attention peasants in my house, and Thor! I think most of us know why we’re all here, but I think it should be mentioned regardless, plus I really wanted to make a speech. Olivia and Wanda, Stitches and Stevie Nicks. You’ve gotten through the first part of this bizarre pseudo-college experience we managed to concoct and so far, have excelled wonderfully. Yes, you both passed with flying colors. Don’t worry, it only gets harder from here. Everyone, let’s raise a glass to our favorite undergrads. May their panic attacks be short, and hangovers be light. To Liv and Wanda!”

                Wanda made her way over to Liv as a general cry of “Liv and Wanda” went up around them. They embraced in a hug, only to pull apart startled by a camera flash. Steve had a Nikon in his hands.

                “Sorry, I’ve been wanting to try photography and I thought tonight would be a great night for candid shots,” he smiled sheepishly.

                “No! Steve, please take all the pictures! It’s a great idea!” Liv was thrilled. She hadn’t even thought to grab her phone and knowing that Steve would capture memories for her was perfect. She posed for a quick picture for him with Wanda and as he walked away she looked over to Bucky, still holding her drink but chatting with Thor. Bucky looked amazing, she could finally take him in. He was in black pants and a light gray button down with a black waistcoat over it. He had rolled his sleeves to the elbows and pulled his hair back. His eyes somehow looked even more blue and intense. Then she noticed his tie. The color matched her dress, exactly! That’s a hell of a coincidence, she wondered. Nat caught her eye and looking over to Bucky’s tie & back, she winked. Liv smiled, Nat was scary with how good she was sometimes. Liv took a step toward Bucky when Sam came over and grabbed her arm, swinging her around with laughter and she heard the beginning strains of Earth, Wind, & Fire’s 'September' start up.

                “Come on cupcake! They’re playing our song! Let’s show ‘em how it’s done,” he half sang to her, dancing her over to what she could only imagine was a “dance floor”. Liv laughed with Sam and grabbed his hands. He had accidentally found her dance skills one day by walking in to her apartment to drop Finn back off and she had music full volume, dancing in her pajamas. They occasionally had mini-dance parties when some of the team went out on missions.

They twirled and shuffled around each other, laughing and swinging their hips to the beat. Sam twirled her, and Liv followed. She loved this song. Rhodey grabbed Pepper and joined them, followed by Tony and Maria. The DJ followed it up with “Shake Your Groove Thing” and Liv was all over it. She was shaking it around the whole dance floor, in literal circles around Sam. Steve was snapping pictures and laughing. Liv saw Bucky watching her dance, also taking in his clenched jaw. She caught his eye and winked at him with a smile. He looked down, but she could see a small smile on his lips.

                Bucky was watching her twirl around with Sam, of all people, and he wasn’t sure if he was more irritated that he wasn’t comfortable enough to dance to this music or fascinated with how she moved with the bottom of her dress swirling around her legs. No, that was it; he loved to watch her. She looked so happy and when she smiled, it was like she was shining. He smiled at her, and then swore to himself as Steve caught a picture of it.

                The song ended, and Liv made her way over to Bucky before Sam could pull her into another one. Bucky loved the way her cheeks were slightly flushed when she came over.

                “Here, looks like you need this,” he mentioned, holding out her gin & tonic.

                “Oh, bless you for holding it this whole time,” she murmured, bringing it to her lips. She was surprised at how cold it still was, and she paused looking up at Bucky.

                “You were holding this in your left hand, weren’t you?” she asked.

                “Yup,” he smirked.

                “Nice,” she smiled.

They stood next to each other for a few minutes, watching the group dancing and laughing at Thor’s attempt at disco. Bucky noticed she was dancing very slightly next to him, but she wasn’t making any indications of leaving his side. At least not for the time being.

                “So….where did you learn to dance?” he asked.

                “I wouldn’t say that whatever I was doing out there was anything I learned,” she laughed. “I just really enjoyed dancing. I can tap dance a little bit though. And I took swing dance lessons for a while. And tango. I almost forgot about that. I had a very good friend a few years ago who loved to dance but his boyfriend didn’t want to take classes, so I went with him. We tried a lot of styles, but swing was the most fun.” She sighed. Those were some fun times.

                “I think I could swing dance…” Bucky whispered. He looked down at his left hand and closed his eyes. It was foggy, but he thought could remember the music and a dance hall before he shipped out. Maybe. He wasn’t sure.

                “Buck?” Steve had come over when he saw the look on Bucky’s face. “Everything ok?”

                “Yeah, Steve, I think I’m ok. I thought…. I’m not sure. Not bad memories.” He looked down at Liv and gave her a small grin. She smiled back even brighter.

Liv stood with Bucky for almost the rest of the night, while other people passed by, striking up conversations with one or both. At one point later in the night, when Bucky was particularly distracted by discussion about Game of Thrones (Clint got him hooked) with Nat and Clint, Steve told her stories about when he’d get dragged along to a dance hall with Bucky and spent the whole time watching him dance.

                “You know there’d be girls lined up around the block to dance with you now?” she laughed.

                “Yeah, it’s still not something I’m used to,” he admitted. Liv had a lightbulb moment.

                “Steve, stay right there and don’t move!” she demanded and ran over to the DJ. Steve nodded, a bit confused.

                After conferring with the DJ for a minute, she walked back with a smug little smile. Bucky leaned over and whispered in her ear.

                “What are you up to?” he murmured, sending shivers up her spine. How did he make that sound sexy??

                “You’ll see. Surprise for Steve, and you a little.” She winked at him and kissed his cheek. He grinned and turned back to Clint & Nat. Liv turned to smile at Steve, who was thoroughly confused at this point.

                “Steve, follow me.” She grabbed his hand and started to lead him to the dance floor, waving at the DJ.

                A minute later, Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy started up and Liv looked over at Steve with a grin.

                “Ready Cap?”

                Steve laughed.

                “Ma’am, after you!”

They didn’t realize everyone had stopped talking and watched them as they spun all over the floor in a Lindy hop. Liv was a little rusty but was great at following at Steve. He was doing a fantastic job of leading and the tosses and flips were easy as pie with a super soldier. Liv noticed everyone watching and started laughing. The song was such a short one that Tony motioned to keep the style going, so Steve and Liv went right into another number. (This time Wanda was recording on her phone. Everyone needed to see Cap swing dancing.) Steve and Liv did another turn around the dance floor until the notes died down and Steve led Liv off the dance floor, laughing until their sides hurt.

                “I had no idea you could do that!” she laughed, gasping for air.

                “I could say the same thing about you!” he grinned.

Liv walked over to Bucky while Wanda showed him the video as the DJ played some more contemporary music in the background. She could hear Steve laughing as she walked toward him. Bucky hadn’t moved from his spot while she was dancing, watching her silently. He _could_ remember dancing and he thought about cutting in, but he wasn’t sure if he could remember all the steps. He smiled down at her while she walked closer.

                “You looked great out there,” he volunteered.

                “I tried. Steve is a hell of a partner. He can literally toss me with one hand.” He laughed at that.

                “Seriously though Liv, you looked great every time you were dancing. I had no idea you could move like that,” he said a little softer, taking a step toward her.

                “I’m not that great, it’s just something that makes me happy,” she replied, stepping closer to him. Neither one of them noticed Wanda running over to the DJ.

                Bucky opened his mouth to speak when Christina Perri’s “A Thousand Years” came on. Liv’s eyes opened wide.

                “Ohhh, I used to love this song!” she sighed, closing her eyes. Bucky gulped. It was now or never.

                “Well…how about a dance with me then?”

Liv was stunned.

                “Are you sure?” she asked. She didn’t want him to get overwhelmed.

He looked down at her, in her beautiful dress with his rose in her hair.

                “Yes,” he answered, “I’m sure.”

He took her hand and led her over to a corner of where everyone had been dancing and brought her one hand up behind his neck. He placed his flesh hand on her waist, feeling her draw in a breath and held her other hand in his. She looked up at him and he looked down in to her eyes.

 

And they danced.

 

Bucky remembered how to keep a beat and a basic waltz came back surprisingly naturally. He even managed to spin her around the dance floor once, pulling her back to him with his arm wrapped around her. He placed a small kiss on her neck before he spun her back out. Somehow, his arms were tighter around her after that. Liv was sure he could feel her heart beating its way out of her chest, but Bucky was too distracted by her eyes looking up at him and the feeling of her pressed against him. Liv and Bucky floated around the dance floor, not hearing Steve’s camera go off half a dozen times. Neither of them realized the room had gone completely silent until the song stopped, and they stood there, unable to look away from each other, frozen in the middle of the dance floor.  The DJ, being a complete professional, immediately started another song with a slightly faster tempo to give the two of them an excuse to leave the floor.

Bucky quickly led Liv by the elbow over to the terrace door, taking them outside away from everyone. It was a chilly winter night, but Liv didn’t feel it. Her whole body was on fire. Bucky closed the door behind them and stood close to her.

                “Liv…Olivia…I’m not sure how to say this,” Bucky began, “I can’t explain how but I just…I’m better when I’m around you. I don’t remember the bad things as much. Everything doesn’t feel as dark. And I don’t get it, you breezed in here and lit everything up like sunlight.”

Liv was blushing, but she felt a familiar fluttering in her stomach.

                “Bucky, I-“ she started

                “No, wait. Let me finish. If I don’t I’ll never remember what I wanted to say,” he rambled. She smiled and nodded, waiting.

                “I like being around you. All the time. And I feel like there could be something here, between us and I want to see where it could go. I mean, I know where I want it to go, but I want to see if you do too. I think it could be something great. I think _we_ could be something great.” He glanced over at her, expecting her to laugh or walk away. She was just looking at him with this small smile. His heart fell for a minute. Of course, she didn’t feel the same way, it was all just flirting. Why would she want him, he has a fucked up head and a metal arm! She should hate him for everything he’s done, especially considering her family. He started to take a step back until she reached out and grabbed his hand.

                “Bucky, don’t go,” she began, “please.” He looked back to see the beginning of tears in her eyes. He panicked, what had he done?? Liv took a deep breath and looked up to meet his eyes.

                “I want to see where this goes too. After I lost my family, I thought I wasn’t going to get another chance to find someone. I wasn’t sure if I wanted one, not right away. I had Finn, I had a good job and I had a nice place. I was getting by. You flipped all of that on its head. When you came back from that mission and I thought I might lose you, my heart was breaking for something I didn’t even realize I wanted. I just….I think I just wanted to be near you. All those nights of staying up talking about nothing and everything with you, it was perfect, and I was terrified that I’d never have that again. My heart was in my throat the whole time I was with Maria sewing you back up, thinking I’d never see your face in the morning or laugh with you over Finn.”

                Bucky was watching her face closely. He was the reason for most of her pain and she still wanted him near her. By all rights she should be terrified of him, she should hate him but none of that was in her eyes. For the first time in decades, someone was looking at him with tenderness and was that, longing? He wasn’t even sure. He felt the smile curling around his lips as he watched her.

                “So….,” he said taking a step closer, “Are you saying you think we could be something?”

                “Bucky,” she teased, “I’m saying I think we already are something, we’re just both such idiots we didn’t even notice it.” She shivered. A light snow had started to fall around them as she spoke. Bucky stepped closer and wrapped his arms around her. She rested her head by his collarbone and closed her eyes. Bucky kissed the top of her head and murmured something about being sorry for the cold. She just smiled.

                “Liv?” he asked, leaning away so she could look up at him.

                “Hmm?” she murmured.

Bucky leaned down and placed a gentle kiss against her lips. He started to break away to see her reaction, but she got up on her toes and wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him back deeper and longer. Bucky tightened his arms around her waist and lifted her feet off the ground. He felt her smile against his lips and he broke the kiss with a laugh, lowering her back down.

They stood there with their foreheads touching, holding on to each other for half a second until the beautiful stillness was broken by a burst of sound over by the windows back in to the tower. Liv jumped and they both whipped around to find Steve, Sam, and most of the rest of the Avengers cheering and clapping by the window. Steve was pumping both his fists in the air and Wanda was giving Liv double thumbs up with a huge grin. They could hear Sam yelling “Way to go, Tinman!” and Maria was even clapping with a smile. Jane was laughing next to Thor, who was holding Mjolnir aloft and proclaiming “Well met, Soldier of Winter! Olivia is a worthy partner!” Nat was over to the side with Clint, not clapping but they were both smiling. Bucky just shook his head at the group while Liv buried her face in his chest, groaning. He laughed, and she could feel the deep rumble.

                “Oh my god,” Liv griped, “what a colossal pack of assholes.”

Bucky just laughed harder and after a minute she joined him.

                “Guess the secret’s out,” he suggested.

                “Not a chance, Barnes!” shouted a muffled Natasha from behind the glass, “Barton owes me $20 because he said you’d never pull the trigger! We’ve all known for weeks!”

                Bucky led them back in to the tower, both shaking the snow out of their hair. Wanda immediately grabbed Liv’s hand and pulled her back over to the closest end of the bar, where the brilliant bartender had two drinks waiting. Before they knew it, the rest of the team was standing around them by the bar in various positions. Liv noticed that the rest of the party seemed to end at some point over the last hour or so and only the team was left. She glanced around her as she and Wanda sipped their drinks and talked with everyone. Bucky made his way over to stand behind Liv and rested his right arm on the bar, letting her lean back against him a bit. She intertwined her fingers with his left hand, letting the cool metal wash over her skin. Liv looked around her, at Pepper and Tony laughing with Thor, Jane deep in conversation with Bruce and Vision, Rhodey and Clint trading scar stories and Nat & Sam teasing Steve about the incredibly late hour and shouldn’t an old man like him be in bed by now? She looked back to Wanda and squeezed Bucky’s hand softly. This was it, they were her family now. Definitely not who she thought she’d be with right now and they didn’t replace the family she’d lost but they filled a portion of the hole in her heart. She settled back against Bucky a little more and smiled at Wanda, joining in their debate about whether Tony should organize a group vacation next summer.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a bit of a short one, but I've got the whole story finished now, so it's down to editing and posting (probably daily).   
> Love y'all for reading this!

         The next morning, Liv woke up in Wanda’s room, a smile on her face before she fully opened her eyes. She lay there for a minute, playing back last night’s events in her head and not fully believing it actually happened. Bucky had kissed her on a snowy terrace at night like some cheesy RomCom and she had completely loved it (because she loved a good RomCom). Reaching over the side of the pullout couch she felt around for Finn, but then remembered that Bucky had carried him in to his room arguing that she had Wanda, so he gets Finn for the night. She laughed softly to herself. She was going to end up sharing that dog with him whether she liked it or not and she was pretty sure Finn didn’t mind one bit. Liv sat up and stretched, walking over to Wanda’s bathroom to jump in the shower. She already had a small bag of clothes stored in the room, so there was no point in going back down to her place anyway. Besides, Wanda bought the best bath products and loved sharing. Liv turned on the shower and stripped down, waiting for it to heat up.

A few minutes later, Wanda woke up to the sound of someone in her shower. Blinking a few times and propping herself up on one hand she listened carefully, then a smile crossed her face as she sat up and grabbed her phone. Liv was singing in the shower and she had a beautiful voice! Wanda slowly stalked over and hit record on her camera app. She had to show this to Nat. Finally, they had a reason to go to karaoke!

 

                _Nothing’s true and nothing’s right_

_So, let me be alone to night_

_Cause you can’t change the way I am_

_Are you strong enough be my man?_

Wanda stood by the door, silently recording as Liv sang. Luckily the glass walls and door of her shower were completely opaque all the way up, so Liv couldn’t spot her out of the corner of her eye, and Wanda wasn’t recording anything except a voice.

 

_When I’ve shown you that I just don’t care?_

_When I’m throwing punches in the air_

_When I’m broken down and I can’t stand_

_Would you be man enough to be my man?_

Wanda listened as Liv finished the song, humming to herself. She hit ‘end’ and slowly backed out of the bathroom and sat back down on her bed. She pulled up the video and tapped out the caption “does this justify karaoke now? 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guessed it, we're heading for a Very Avengers Christmas (sort of)


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a Very Avengers Christmas (sort of)!

        Liv had been enjoying her break from classes and was loving all her new time with Bucky. She managed to catch up on a few TV shows she had missed and watch a few movies, even introducing Bucky to some new ones. They had even finished most of them, when they were able to stop making out like teenagers for 5 minutes.

       But this morning she felt restless. Christmas was a little more than a week away and she needed to go do something. Rummaging around in her kitchen she started putting a bunch of things in to a canvas bag and a minute later she was headed to the elevators.

                Walking out of the elevators, Liv could hear faint strains of music coming from the common area. It was empty aside from Sam, who had music coming from his phone beside him and was reading. He looked up when he heard her walk in.

                “Hey Sam,” she started, setting her bag down on the counter with a slight clang, “busy?”

                “Hey cupcake,” he said, “what are you up to? No Tinman around?”

                “Actually- “she glanced at her watch “-he’s training with Steve and Nat for a few hours. Feel like giving me a hand?”

                “Sure. What are we doing?”

Liv put her mom’s massive recipe book on the counter with a bang. She grinned.

                “We’re gonna make a mess.”

 

Hours later, Bucky and Steve walked up from the training rooms to hear laughter and music coming from the kitchen. Bucky smiled, recognizing Liv’s laughter. They rounded the corner to see her with Sam and Wanda, baking Christmas cookies. Sam was attempting to roll out the dough for another batch and Wanda kept moving the rolling pin with her abilities, causing him to let out a string of half-angry curse words and Liv practically double over with laughter.

                Steve and Bucky looked around the scene. There were at least 2 dozen sugar cookies of varying shapes cooling everywhere and there was still more dough. Steve shook his head and walked over to one of the cookies, attempting to grab one off a cooling rack.

                *SMACK*

                “HEY!” Steve yelped, snatching his hand back and causing Bucky to almost fall over with laughter. Wanda had moved a spatula with a twitch of her fingers and smacked Steve’s hand.

                “No sneaking cookies early!” ordered Liv, winking at Wanda.

                “You know, you can always throw on an apron and give us a hand,” suggested Wanda, “even Sam put one on.”

Sam stopped and straightened up, pointing to the ‘Kiss the Cook’ on his apron with a smirk. Wanda and Liv were both wearing flower printed ones.

                “Yes! Please stay! We could use more hands. I’ve still got the gingerbread to do and we have to  frost all of these. There’s more aprons in the pantry, I think Tony sleep-ordered them from a wholesale chef’s website or something, there’s like 2 dozen in there.”

                Steve and Bucky looked at each other and shrugged. Steve walked over and tossed Bucky an apron from the pantry and they got to work. Bucky went over to Liv and gave her a deep kiss.

                “Hey doll,” he whispered.

                “Hi sugar,” she crooned back. He loved it when she called him sugar. Sam rolled his eyes.

                “What do you need us to do?” Steve asked, standing by Wanda while Bucky pulled his hair back.

                “Well, why don’t you and Wanda mix the gingerbread dough, and Bucky can help me with the frosting. Sam, you can finish up the sugar cookies, right?”

                “Sure cupcake, whatever you want. If someone stops moving things around on me,” he gave Wanda some serious side eye. Wanda gave him a wink and moved the roller in to his hands.

Liv giggled and slid her mom’s recipe book over to Cap and Wanda, opening it to the right page while they got to work getting ingredients out.

                “Won’t we need that?” asked Bucky, nodding to the book.

                “Nope, this recipe I’ve got memorized,” she confided. Liv headed in to the pantry area and came back out with a dozen small glass bowls and spread them out over the counter. She turned to Bucky.

                “Ready?”

 

2 hours later they had 6 loaves of Liv’s mom’s gingerbread and about 5 dozen sugar cookies. Clint and Nat had turned up by then and were hanging out by the breakfast bar critiquing everyone’s frosting technique, while Bruce was mixing up more frosting for Liv. Tony had even wandered in and tried to steal cookies. Eventually, Steve and Liv were the only ones left frosting as the others had either gravitated into the living room or were cleaning up the kitchen. Christmas music was even playing over the intercom system. A little while later, while Liv and Steve were down to the last few cookies, Tony walked in, followed by about 3 people carrying huge boxes, who were then followed by 4 more people carrying other large boxes.

                “Tony, what is all this?” Steve asked, wiping his hands on his apron.

                “Well, since Stitches felt the need to bake for Christmas, I thought it could maybe look a little like Christmas in here,” he said throwing open the top of a box to reveal tons of different Christmas decorations. Liv gasped happily.

                “Tony! This is going to look so great in here! Thank you!”

                “Yeah, well it wouldn’t be complete without this,” he said and pointed to the two men trying to lug a massive tree in to the common area. Clint and Liv clapped, while Nat and Wanda started unpacking the boxes. Bucky watched how happy Liv was with everything and smiled. She lit up the room.

                A short while later, the tree was up, and Wanda was using her powers to hang lights and garland on it while Vision was floating up hanging ornaments higher on the tree. Sam, Nat and Clint were hanging the rest on the lower portions while Tony “supervised”. Bruce and Bucky were finishing up the dishes. Liv and Steve had finished the last of the cookies and she was hanging up her apron in the pantry when Bucky snuck up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and placing a kiss on her neck.

                “Hey sugar,” she whispered, squeezing his arms around her, “are you enjoying all of this holiday cheer?” He spun her around and pulled her in close.

                “I wouldn’t have given it another thought if you hadn’t done all of this,” he admitted.

                “I didn’t do much. I wouldn’t have done anything, really, but Steve mentioned that you didn’t really remember Christmas and you said you hadn’t had celebrated in decades, so I thought I’d give you a great one.” She smiled with a shrug.

                “Wait,” he realized, “Liv, you did this all for me?”

                “Well, yes and no. Mainly yes. But I also wanted to show everyone how much they’ve meant to me lately. You were the main inspiration for the Christmas cookies though.”

                “Liv, that’s…you’re amazing” he breathed, pulling her in for a hug. He kissed the top of her head gently. She was too good to him. After everything he had done, she thought to do this for him.

                “C’mon sugar, let’s get out there,” she pulled his hand, “I really want to see them fight over who puts the star on the top of the tree!”

               

                3 hours and 1 very large order of Thai food later, the tree was fully decorated. Complete with beautiful star on top, which was placed there by Wanda while Sam and Tony bickered about how could fly up the easiest. Clint had offered to shoot it up with an arrow, but Wanda’s way had worked best. There had been yards and yards of fake pine garland in one of the boxes so Bucky, Liv, and Bruce had decorated the rest of the space with it, along with some of the red and gold baubles (of course Tony bought red and gold).  The team sat back and admired their handiwork, while Tony tried explaining Christmas to Vision to everyone’s amusement.

                Liv motioned to Wanda and the two of them walked a few paces away from everyone, heads together. They were whispering excitedly, and Wanda was nodding. Bucky looked over at Liv, mouthing _What are you doing?_ She just grinned in response and mouthed back, _you’ll see_. After a minute they walked back to the group and Bucky caught the last of it from Wanda’s end.

                “Yeah, it’ll work. And I think we can get Pepper in on it. I’ll talk to her tomorrow.”

                “Talk to Pepper about what?” he teased them.

                “Does it even matter?” said Wanda, “Everybody knows if you want something impossible done, you ask Pepper. She’s got a solution for everything.”

                Liv nodded. “It’s true, she basically arranged for our “college” to be here, despite what Tony says. Although the part about him pimping Bruce out for lectures is true,” she mused.

                Bucky nodded. He made a mental note about asking Pepper for help with impossible tasks.  Liv leaned in to him as she watched the team and laughed at something Steve said. Bucky wrapped his arm around her and smiled. This felt right.

 

                The next morning, Bucky was standing in front of Pepper’s office, lightly knocking on her door.

                “Hold on just a second!” came a light voice from within, heading to the door, “I’m so sorry, my assistant isn’t here yet and-Oh! Sgt. Barnes! I wasn’t expecting you, did we have a meeting?” Pepper said, looking down to her tablet and scrolling furiously.  

                “No, no we didn’t,” he admitted, “but I heard that if I need something impossible done that you’re the person that can figure out how to do it.”

                “Oh, well. That’s flattering, but I don’t know if I’m that good. I suppose it would depend on what you’d like done. If it’s robotics with your arm though, that’s really more Tony’s- “

                “No,” he cut her off, “it’s not my arm. It’s a Christmas present. I know it’s short notice, but I wasn’t sure how I went about doing this.”

                Pepper’s face softened. She had heard from Bruce and Maria how Bucky was with Olivia. She was nervous about the two of them together at first but seeing him in front of her like this, she was definitely changing her mind.

                “Come in and sit down. We’ll pick out the perfect gift.” Pepper smiled and opened the door wider, gesturing for him to go in. Bucky relaxed and walked in, shutting the door behind himself.

 

                The day of the Avengers Christmas celebration rolled around, and Tony found himself unable to walk in to his own kitchen.

                “Vision. Move.”

                “I am sorry Tony, but I am under strict orders to not let anyone inside this vicinity except for Olivia, Wanda or Miss Potts.”

                He could hear laughter and pans banging together behind the partition that had been set up.

                “What the hell….. FINE. I’ll get breakfast somewhere else. EVEN THOUGH THIS IS MY HOUSE AND YOU ALL LIVE IN IT,” he shouted to nobody in particular.

                “Thank you Tony!” chimed Liv and Wanda from behind the wall, giggling.

                “…kids…” he muttered under his breath, stalking away.

 

                Later that afternoon, while Tony was in his lab tinkering on one of his suits when FRIDAY chimed in overhead.

                “Excuse me, Boss.”

                “Yeah, kinda busy FRIDAY.”

                “I know Boss. But Miss Potts wants you in the common area.”

                “Yeah FRIDAY, I’ll be up there soon.”

                “She specifically requested Now, Boss. And that you change your shirt on your way up.”

He rolled his eyes. Fine. Tony tossed the tool down and jumped up. Minutes later he was walking in to the formerly walled-off common area, tugging on the clean shirt he had thrown on and stopped dead in his tracks. There was an actual Christmas dinner on the table, with all the trimmings. Liv and Wanda stood by the table, with Pepper on the other side. Christ, she’d even put a red and green bowtie on the damn dog.

                “Well?” asked Liv, “What do you think?”

                “This is amazing. Where is everyone else?” Tony looked around.

                “I wanted to call you up first, in case you took forever. FRIDAY is gathering everyone else now.”

One by one the Avengers trickled in, marveling at the dinner that Liv and Wanda had whipped up with Pepper’s help. She had organized for all the food to get delivered on time and for the girls to have a hand or two in the kitchen.

                “Ok, everybody, grab a seat. It’s almost time to carve the bird.” Liv announced, gesturing to everyone.

                She sat and motioned for Bucky to sit next to her. He grabbed his seat and looked down at all the food piled on the long table. He’d never seen this much food at one time in his life, that he was pretty sure of.

                Tony stood up and grabbed the carving knives, walking to the head of the table.

                “Um…Tony. Not your job,” said Liv with a smile.

                “Uh, excuse me? That’s what the head of the family does.”

                “Yeah, and you’re not the head of the family,” came a voice from the corridor.

                “…son of a bitch” mouthed Tony as Nick Fury rounded the corner with Maria Hill.

A general noise of surprise erupted from everyone, including Clint who’s “shit, I didn’t get anything for Fury” came out clear as day once everything quieted down.

                “Relax Barton, we’re only here for the food,” placated Maria, sitting down next to Rhodey at the end.

                Fury walked over and grabbed the utensils out of Tony’s hands with a smirk.       

                “Let’s eat!” he declared and started cutting the meat.

 

It was an oddly typical holiday dinner. Wanda and Liv fielded compliments on their cooking, even though Liv insisted it was mostly Wanda. Vision sat next to Wanda and asked her a dozen questions, smelling everything, she put on her plate. Bucky and Steve put piles of food on their plates, joking that it was a good thing Thor couldn’t leave Asgard at that moment because they’d run out of everything. Clint asked for at least 2 recipes while feeding Finn under the table. Sam told Liv about one of his Christmas’ in Iraq and how bad the food in the mess hall was that day. Everyone was completely stuffed, just like a normal Christmas. They all sat there talking and trading stories until Fury stood up to leave with Hill.

                “Wait, you can’t leave yet. There’s dessert! Olivia made it, it looks fantastic,” reprimanded Pepper. Liv stood up and started gathering plates to bring in to the kitchen when Bucky stopped her.

                “Let us get that. You cooked, we clean. I remember that much at least,” he joked, and Steve snorted. Clint and Sam stood up to help Bucky and Steve get the dirty plates while Rhodey followed Liv in to the kitchen to get dessert plates and more utensils. Rhodey emerged a minute later with a small stack of plates and forks with Liv behind him carrying 2 beautiful Buche de Noels…..And then Bucky behind her carrying two more

                “Jesus Liv, how much did you think we were gonna eat?” Nat teased as they set the cakes down on the table.

                “I know, I know but I didn’t want to make just one flavor in case somebody hated chocolate so…yeah ok I went overboard.”

                “I disagree. How is more cake a bad thing?” Clint asked, finishing up in the kitchen. “What’s what, kid?’

                Liv beamed. She described each one as she pointed them out. They each looked like a small log from the forest, some covered in powdered sugar snow. There was a traditional one, with a vanilla sponge, raspberry filling and chocolate frosting. Then a citrus sponge with lemon curd filling and cream cheese frosting that Liv had colored to look like wood. The next was a chocolate sponge with mint filling and chocolate rum frosting and the last one was a vanilla sponge with chocolate mousse filling and chocolate frosting. She had even put little sugar mushrooms on 2 of them.

                Everyone was silent for a second, amazed that the two of the girls had gone to this much trouble and that Liv had baked them 4 cakes while Wanda made a fantastic dinner.

                “Tinman,” spoke up Sam, breaking the silence, “If you screw this up with Livvie, I’m snapping her up myself.”

                Liv laughed and handed Steve a cake knife.

                “You’d better start handing pieces out before we have a riot,” she smiled, cutting in to another cake. “Now who wants which one?”

 

                Much later after everyone was full of at least 2 pieces of cake (Steve and Bucky full of 4) the table was cleared, and coffee was brewing, Fury was saying his goodbyes to the team. Maria waved to Liv as she walked out, and it was quiet again.

                “So, according to your traditions, once you have the feast and the desserts, do you then open presents?” Vision asked Wanda.

                “Well, Vis, yes usually we do but nobody really did anything this year, since we’ll all be gone.”

                “Then what is under the tree?”

The team looked over and sure enough, there was a small pile of presents under the tree.

                Liv coughed. “Um….those are from me.”

                “What?!” Wanda whipped her head around, “You didn’t tell me! We even went out shopping together, when did you do this?”

                “None of your business, I just did. Besides, I liked helping you pick out presents for Clint’s kids.”

                “Ok, so what’s under the tree then,” asked Nat.

Liv stood up and walked over to the tree, kneeling down.             

                “There’s something for each of you. No, shut up, listen. I haven’t had a proper Christmas in a few years and all of you have done so much for me lately that I figured this was the perfect time to do something nice for you, with no expectation of a return or any pretense. Now get over here so I can hand these out.”

                Everyone walked over and sat down, Steve elbowing Bucky.

                “How are you not freaking out about a present for Liv,” he whispered.

                “Because I knew she got everyone something a while ago,” he whispered back.

                “And you didn’t think to tell me?!” Steve retorted.

                “Not my secret to tell. She likes doing things for people, let her have this. We owe it to her.”

Steve gave Bucky a confused look, but Liv came over and handed Steve a pair of wrapped boxes with a smile so that was the end of that.

He slid the ribbon off and took off the paper, smiling. The first one was a beautiful wooden box of sketching pencils, with his name burned in to the wood. The second gift made him stare at Liv in amazement. She found archived photos of the Howling Commandos with Peggy and Steve and had them framed in beautiful silver Tiffany frames. These weren’t official photos, these were candid shots.

                “Where did you get these?” he marveled, running his fingers over the photo.

                “I had some help,” she said, winking at Rhodey. He smiled back. Having a little military pull was helpful when you needed to dig in to the archives.

Rhodey unwrapped his present next and grinned at Liv. It was a leather-bound journal with his name embossed on the front, right under the Air Force logo. He showed it to Tony who was unwrapping his and laughed. She got him a set of 3 toy robots you had to assemble. They were solar-powered and for kids, but Tony loved it. He called Bruce over who was unwrapping a gift of his own. Liv had FRIDAY upload a new series of arias to his phone and had gotten him a book on Buddhist meditation techniques. Bruce looked up at Liv and smiled. It was really thoughtful, and he was touched. Liv was then tackled by Wanda who was in love with her gifts. The black and red leather guitar strap was beautiful, and the red panda “adoption” certificate was perfect. She loved the little stuffed animal with it! She ran over to Vision to show him as he opened his gift. Liv smiled as he slowly started flipping through the Julia Child cookbook, clearly trying to decide which one he should try first. Clint laughed at that as he opened his and laughed even harder. A small bronze statue of the Greek Goddess Artemis, the archer on a small pedestal was in the box, as well as a book on gardening. Sam laughed at thought of Clint the gardener and opened the small box Liv had handed to him. It was tickets to a huge blues festival in Charleston, SC that they had talked about. 3 days of oyster roasts, low country boils and blues by the ocean. Sam jumped up and hugged Liv, almost knocking her over.

                “Seriously Tinman,” he started..

                “Yeah, I know I know,” Bucky growled, glaring at him. Liv sat down next to him and curled her arm around his.

                “Do you think Natasha guessed the gift?” she whispered in his ear as they watched her open the package. Her eyes grew wide as she pulled out a huge blanket of black faux fur with red tints in spots. She immediately curled up in it like a cat, smiling over at Liv.

                “Nope, I don’t think she did,” said Bucky, “Looks like it was a success.”

                “Well, not everyone got theirs yet,” she replied, handing him a small box.

He let go of her arm and slid the ribbon off, opening the box. There was a small device inside. He looked up at her expectantly.

                “It’s an older iPod. I didn’t want to get you a touch screen one because I didn’t know if it would work with your left hand, so this one seemed smarter. I’ve already put a ton of music on it, from the 40’s and 50’s all the way up to current stuff. Everybody gave me suggestions, and I put a few songs on there I know you like already. I know it’s a little lame, but I have another present to give you on Christmas day anyway.” She shrugged, getting red. He wasn’t saying anything. Oh god, he hated it. Why would she even assume he’d like the music she picked out. She was slightly panicking until he kissed her.

                “I love it. It’s great, I can’t wait to see what’s on it.”

                “There’s earbuds in the box,” she pointed out, grinning from ear to ear.

Liv sat back and admired her handiwork. Tony and Bruce were already off in a corner trying to figure out how they could improve the little robots, Wanda had already put the new strap on her guitar and Steve was staring at his pictures with a soft smile. She left Bucky with a kiss and walked over to Steve.

                “Were these a bad idea? I’m sorry if they bring back sad memories,” she apologized.

                “No, Liv. This was perfect. I don’t really have any pictures from then, and I remember when these were taken. Here, look in this one. Recognize that guy?”

There he was, standing next to a barrel-chested man in a bowler hat, laughing. Sgt. James Buchanan Barnes. Her Bucky.

                “Oh, my goodness…” she whispered, “look at him.”

                “You know, I haven’t seen him smile like that in a long time. Not until you came along. You two work, you know. Something just clicks. You’re good for him, I can see the difference,” he vouched.

                “He’s good for me,” she blushed, “I was broken too, and when I’m around him I feel like the pain isn’t as bad.”

                Steve smiled. He suspected something had happened to Liv in her past, but he didn’t want to pry. If she was better because of Bucky, then Steve was satisfied.

                “I’m glad you’ll be here with him for Christmas,” Steve confessed, “I knew he wouldn’t come to Sam’s, but I felt horrible cancelling on Sam.”

                “Oh, we’ll be fine. I’ve got it planned out. Sleeping in, ordering food, watching old movies, watching new movies, walking in the city with Finn to look at the lights tomorrow, it’ll be great.” Liv assured him.

                Steve laughed. It wasn’t your average Christmas, but they weren’t exactly average people.

                Liv went back over to Bucky and explained how to charge it with the cord that came in the box and promised she’d show him how to add more songs tomorrow. Steve stood up.

                “Well kids, I’m heading to bed. Got a long day tomorrow,” he announced and said his good nights. Liv had forgotten that Steve and Sam were leaving early in Christmas Eve to spend time at a few of the VA centers in the city before going to Sam’s family’s house. Sam stood up and walked over to Liv.

                “Thanks cupcake,” Sam said as he pulled her in to a hug, “You did good. You’ve changed this place you know. Things are lighter here now. Just ask Tinman.” He gave her another squeeze and left, saying goodnight to everyone over his shoulder. 

                One by one the team wandered to their beds, giving Liv a hug or kiss on the cheek and a heartfelt thank you for their gifts until it was only her and Bucky standing by the tree. She leaned against his side and yawned into his shoulder.

                “Let’s get you to bed, sweetheart,” Bucky murmured to Liv.

                “No, I’m fine. Besides I’ve got to clean all this up and put things away- “

                “Liv. Honey. I’ll take care of it. I promise. Come one, I’ll walk you down to your place.”

She nodded her assent and Bucky led her towards the elevators whistling for a sleepy Finn to follow. When he just lifted his head from his spot by the couch, Bucky and Liv laughed.

                “Ok buddy, you can stay with me tonight,” he consented.

They got down to her door, Liv unlocking it with her fingerprint (thank you Tony). She kicked off her shoes and Bucky followed her in, leaving her door open.

                “Need help getting to bed?” he teased.

                “No, but you could always stay for a minute,” she smiled.

                “Not tonight sweetheart,” he murmured, stepping closer to her and tracing her jaw with his thumb, “you’re exhausted, and I’ve got to get back upstairs and clean up.” He leaned down and kissed her lips softly a few times before stepping away. He knew she didn’t mean for him to, but he definitely heard the little sigh leave her lips.

                “Everything was wonderful today. You did a beautiful job, I can’t tell you how much it meant to me,” he assured her.

                “Sugar, I just wanted you to have a traditional Christmas. And I wanted to see you smile more. I love your smile,” she confessed, a little sleep-drunk. Bucky chuckled.

                “Come on певунья,” he murmured, scooping her up bridal-style in his arms and carrying her to her bed. He softly laid her down and pulled the covers over her. She reached up and squeezed his hand before he turned away.

                “My Bucky,” she whispered, “goodnight.” His heart leapt in his chest. He knelt and placed a kiss on her forehead.

                “Good night, my Olivia. I’ll see you in the morning,” he murmured.

Bucky turned and left her apartment, locking her door behind him. He sighed thinking about putting everything away upstairs but letting Liv get some sleep was worth it. After today she must have been exhausted. He walked in to the elevator and leaned back. He smiled to himself, remembering that he had her all to himself for the next two days. His Liv.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No, I will not be giving you a translation for the Russian term of endearment Bucky calls Liv. At least, not right away. Don't worry, I'll have him tell her later on in the story. Feel free to google it though, it doesn't give a huge plot point away or anything! (And if I've gotten it wrong, the blame is solely on google, not me the non-Russian speaker...)


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Liv & Bucky's Christmas Eve! 
> 
> Bit of a trigger warning here, you get a little of Liv's past but not a whole lot. Enough to cause her some pain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short chapter. I would've felt guilty posting it alone, so I'm double posting today.

The next morning Liv woke up to the sounds of Christmas music being pumped through the overhead speakers in her apartment. She yawned and sat up slowly, smiling.

                “FRIDAY?”

                “Yes Miss?”

                “What’s with the music?” Liv rolled off the bed and walked in to her bathroom.

                “Sgt. Barnes thought it would be nice for you to wake up to something festive, Miss. And he asked me to let you know that Captain Rogers and Mr. Wilson have already left, as well as Dr. Banner, Miss Potts and Mr. Stark. I believe Mr. Barton and his group are leaving within the hour.”

                “Great, thank you FRIDAY.”

 

After the quickest shower in the world, Liv was on her way upstairs. Since it was Christmas, but she also wasn’t leaving the tower for most of the day, she threw on black leggings and a deep red oversized sweater. Stepping off the elevator, she saw a few bags in the foyer waiting for their owners.

                “Wanda? Nat?” she called, walking in to the living room.

                “We’re here!” Wanda called over from the kitchen.

Liv turned the corner to find the Wanda with Nat and Clint at the table with Bucky and Vision.

                “Hey!” she smiled to Wanda, “I’m so glad I didn’t miss you before you left!” She bent down to give her friend a hug before sitting next to Bucky, who slid a cup of coffee over to her with a wink.

                “We’re heading out soon,” Clint stated, “couple more minutes, kid, and you would’ve missed this handsome face.”

                “Meh….. I’ll take it or leave it,” she shrugged as Wanda and Nat laughed. Clint just shook his head, smiling.

                “Alright Ladies-“ he said as he gulped the last of his coffee, “-we gotta get on the road.  

They all stood, Liv giving Wanda a hug and then moving to Nat.

                “Have a great time, we’ll see you in a few days,” Liv murmured as they said their goodbyes.

 

                Minutes later, Bucky and Liv were watching the elevator doors close behind Wanda, Nat, Clint and Vision.

                “Well sugar,” she said turning to Bucky, “what do you feel like doing?” He wrapped her in his arms and kissed her gently.

                “This seems good,” he responded. She giggled as he tickled her neck with the scruff on his chin.

                “I agree, but maybe not in the lobby like a pair of weirdos,” she laughed in between kisses.

                Bucky looked down at her and raised an eyebrow. The next thing Liv knew, she was in the air and over his shoulder. She screamed with surprise and laughed even harder.

                “Problem solved!” Bucky declared, carrying her in to the living room and dropping her on the couch, and then flopping down next to her. Still laughing, she curled up by his shoulder. They sat like that for a few minutes, in front of the huge Christmas tree with the snow falling out of the windows. It was almost too perfect.

                “I’ve got an idea,” Liv started.

                “Let’s hear it,” Bucky answered.

                “Feel like taking Finn for a walk?” She asked.

               

                Within a few minutes they were bundled up and heading out in to the city. Bucky was surprisingly at ease. He was wearing a jacket and gloves over his metal arm and his hat was hiding his hair. Liv wasn’t one of the Avengers, so nobody recognized them. He was just another guy with his girlfriend walking their dog on Christmas Eve, looking at the lights. Bucky smiled to himself. He enjoyed the thought of Liv as his girlfriend and the warmth that was spreading in his chest because of it. He tugged on Finn’s leash to keep him from sniffing every single crack in the sidewalk as Liv slipped her arm through his and leaned on his shoulder. He glanced down at her, catching the smile on her face as she looked around the city. There was a softness in her face he hadn’t seen before. Maybe it was Christmas or maybe it was just this feeling snaking its way around his heart…..

                “What is it, what are you thinking?” he asked her, trying to ignore the feeling in his chest.

                “Nothing really. Just how a little coating of snow on the city can make it look completely different. I lived in the South for a while and Christmas just isn’t the same without snow,” she smiled up at him.

                “You lived in the south? I didn’t know that,” he mused, “Where? Do you miss it?”

                “I was in Charleston, in South Carolina. That’s how I knew about the music festival for Sam,” she paused, “Sometimes I think I do miss it. Especially when it’s bitter cold here in January. Speaking of cold, I think we should head back in a minute, look at Finn.”

                They turned to look at the dog, who had decided to sit down in a snow bank and refused to budge, no matter how many times they called his name or tugged on his leash.

                “Ok fine,” conceded Bucky, “I give up. You win buddy.” He walked over to Finn and scooped him up, winking at Liv and turning to head for the tower.

                Much later, after Liv had but paw butter on Finn and they gave him a blanket & squeaky toy to take to his bed in the common room and after Liv and Bucky had poured over take out menus in the kitchen trying to decide what to order, they were settling on the couch to decide which of the dozen movies Liv suggested they watch.

                “Ok, well we’re definitely watching White Christmas at some point, that’s been established,” she announced, tucking a leg under her as she sat on the couch with a cup of hot tea.

                “Yeah, that’s decided. I can’t have you breaking tradition because of me,” he agreed, “Besides, I think I remember a song with the same name.”

                “Yeah…..it’s the same song. They made a movie with it as the focal point after the war. The song came out in ’42 though. I Googled it,” she confessed sheepishly. Bucky lit up. He had remembered that song! He was pretty sure he danced with a girl to that song at some point. He couldn’t remember her face though, or her name.

                “You googled it? How many of these movie facts did you google before today?” he asked as he lowered himself down next to her.

                “I didn’t do that many!”

                “Liar! Why are you lying to me? It’s _Christmas_ and you’re lying,” he teased, grabbing her waist and pulling her closer.

                “Honestly, I had no idea when some of these were made and I didn’t want to have you watch something you had already seen,” she admitted.

                “Sweetheart, it’s been 70 years, I don’t think the plot lines will be familiar,” he laughed.

                “That’s not why,” she answered softly, shifting a bit, “I wasn’t sure if something like that would trigger a memory, good OR bad. I’m not sure what you want me to do in that situation. I want you to tell me but I’m guessing Christmas isn’t the best time to hash all that out.”

                Bucky was touched. She had put a lot of thought in to this. It was the first time she had asked about his memory triggers.

                “I just assumed you were afraid of everything in my past because of….what happened,” his voice dropped off.

                “No! That’s not it at all. We’ve been over this-“ she smacked his arm- “so stop. And this conversation is getting too heavy for Christmas Eve. I’m picking a movie.”

               

 

                Later that night, after _Guys & Dolls, Some Like It Hot, _and the inevitable _White Christmas,_ Bucky walked in from the kitchen after throwing out takeout containers to catch Liv yawning.

                “I saw that.”

                “I’m not tired, shhh,” she argued.

                “C’mon, you’re falling asleep on the couch.”

                *loooooong yawn* “No I’m not!”

                “Let’s go, певунья. I’m putting you in Wanda’s bed.”

After managing to get her off the couch with minimal argument, she sleepily walked down the hallway to Wanda’s room. Bucky walked her to the door and leaned on the doorjamb.

                “Goodnight, Liv,” he smiled at her as she kicked her shoes off by Wanda’s bed.

                “Goodnight Bucky. Merry Christmas,” she answered, turning to him and smiling.

He walked in and swept her up in his arms, kissing her deeply. She melted against him as he pulled away.

                “Merry Christmas Olivia. I’ll be down the hallway a bit if you need me,” he said softly, placing a few kisses against her jaw and cheeks. She smiled and leaned in to his kisses. He kissed her lips softly one more time and left her alone in the room. Liv sat down on the bed and smiled to herself. He was amazing.

 

                Hours later, Bucky woke up with a start. That was semi-normal for him. Of all the things HYDRA did, giving him an abnormal sleeping pattern was the most unexpected side effect. He sat up in bed slowly, realizing his door was slightly open. Looking around, everything in his room was where it was supposed to be, including the hidden handgun on the side of his night stand facing his bed. Then he realized Finn was gone. Bucky stood up. He should probably go check to make sure he’s in with Liv and not wandering around the floor or destroying the kitchen. Re-adjusting his sleep pants and not bothering with a shirt or shoes, he walked out his door when he heard a sound from the hallway. No, not the hallway. In someone’s room. He slowed his footsteps and went on full alert until he realized the sound was coming from Wanda’s room. _Liv,_ he thought, speeding his steps back up. Wanda’s door was slightly open, probably from Finn pushing his way in when Bucky realized what he was hearing was Liv crying. More like sobbing. It was one of the worst sounds Bucky had ever heard. He’d never thought about what a broken heart sounded like, but this must be what it is.

                “Liv?” he asked, walking through the door.

She was curled up on Wanda’s bed, Finn next to her with his head on her side. She was weeping in to a pillow, one arm wrapped around her chest.

                “Liv? Is it another panic attack?” he rushed to her side. He wanted to hold her until everything was ok, but he wasn’t sure that was what she wanted.

                “No,” she whispered through the tears, “It’s not that. I miss them.” The tears started all over after that.

                Oh. _OH._ He realized with horror. Christmas must be incredibly hard for her _because of him_ and she acted like everything was fine, just so he could have a normal holiday. He started to bend down to kiss her head, then stopped and went to back out of the room. She didn’t need to see him right now.

                “Bucky?” came a ragged whisper when he was halfway to the door.

                “I’m right here,” he whispered back.

                “Please don’t leave me.” She sounded so small, not like the usual bright like sunlight Liv. His heart shattered. He made it back across the room in 2 strides and knelt next to the bed to press his forehead against hers. She grabbed for his hands and held them to her chest, never opening her eyes.

                “I’m sorry,” he whispered, “I’m so sorry.” He could feel his voice getting thick and the hot tears were forming in his eyes. He’d never seen Liv, his Liv, look so broken. She was always his sunlight, and this was like watching a hurricane roll in.

               

Liv lay there, unable to stop the pain in her heart. She had dreamt of a Christmas that would never happen, with her babies happily surrounded by wrapping paper, smiling under the lights from the tree. The tears had already started before she had woken up all the way and the sobs that tore her apart must have woken Finn up too, because he came pounding in to the room a minute later. It hurt, in a way she had forgotten it could, so she lay there letting it wash over her in waves. She was fully consumed by it until she heard Bucky’s voice by the doorway. It was like the smallest pinprick of light in a dark room. She needed him to stay, he couldn’t leave her like this.

 

                “Please don’t leave me”

 

He was right there, and she was grabbing him and holding on for dear life like he was her anchor. Maybe he could keep her from floating away in this deep, dark sea. She could feel his metal arm pull away and start running his hand up and down her back, up to her face to brush the hair away from her forehead, over her arms. She could feel the tears start to slow down and subside. Liv finally opened her eyes to look at him and was surprised to see the tracks of tears on his cheeks. She let go with one of her hands and placed it on his cheek, softly. She knew he could tell that her breath was slowing down, and she had almost stopped crying.

                “Bucky,” she whispered, “Bucky, I’m sorry. I- “

Bucky snapped his head up and stared at her.

                “Liv, why the hell are you apologizing to me?! I’M THE REASON FOR THIS                !” he shouted, pulling away from her. His breath was coming in fast and his head was starting to pound. It was his fault, it was all his fault. He destroyed her life and she was apologizing to him for crying about it. He was useless, worthless, he never deserved her. He started to back away until he felt a pressure on his chest. She had gotten up off the bed and was clinging to him, he never even saw her move. He froze for a minute and then wrapped his arms around her, pouring everything into keeping himself together for her.

                “Bucky? Bucky please come back to me,” she begged softly.

                “I’m here Liv, I’m here. I’m sorry I yelled at you. I just didn’t understand- “

                “Shh, it’s ok. I know. I was afraid my pain would bring up your pain then I would feel worse and we’d be in some sort of horrible spiral,” she mumbled, “if any of that makes sense.”

                He shook his head. Even in the middle of her grief, she was afraid for him. How could he ever deserve her, he wondered to himself. He could do nothing but good things for a thousand years and he was sure it still wouldn’t be enough. He tightened his arms around her and kissed the top of her head, breathing in the scent of her hair. He could feel her relax a bit in his arms and lean in to him. Bucky felt a tightness in his chest when she pressed her cheek against his bare chest. They stood still like that for a while, both clinging to the other one, neither willing to move and break the spell.

                It was Liv that spoke first.

                “Bucky?”

                “I’m here.”

                “I don’t want to be alone tonight,” she said softly. He knew she wasn’t asking for anything other than to feel safe, and he didn’t want anything more than that tonight. Bucky kissed her forehead and led her back in to his room, whistling to Finn to follow them. He led her down the hallway to his room, never letting go of her hand even as he opened the door and pulled back the blankets on his bed. Finn trotted over to his bed next to Bucky’s king bed, already used to the surroundings. Liv sat down on his bed, watching him as he moved to the other side and climbed in. He laid down, wrapping his arms around her while she rested her head on his chest. He could feel her breathing slowing and within minutes he was positive she was asleep. Shifting slightly and kissing her head, he closed his eyes and joined her.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Christmas Day (in the story) and....  
> SMUT.
> 
> Also confessional and some gift-giving fluff.

The next morning, Christmas morning, Liv woke up adjusting her eyes to the little bit of sunlight shining through the windows. She sighed. Last night was a very rare break in her shell. She thought about that for a minute and realized maybe it was time for more cracks in the shell. She couldn’t live like that forever, closed off from almost everyone. They wouldn’t want her to. She went to move and realized that a very strong metal arm was snaking around her waist. She smiled and leaned back in to him, grateful that last night hadn’t scared him away somehow. She felt his lips on her shoulder and she smiled.

                “Good morning, sugar,” she murmured over her shoulder.

                “Merry Christmas Liv,” he answered between kisses on her neck.

He lifted his arm a bit as he realized she wanted to roll over and she turned, placing kisses on his chest.

                “Merry Christmas,” she replied, looking up at him. She didn’t think she would ever get over how intensely blue his eyes were. She leaned up, kissing his lips gently and felt his arms pull her closer. He kissed her deeper and she kissed him back just as hungrily. The next thing Liv knew he had rolled her on to her back and was leaning his body on hers while running his hand up her stomach and side. She ran her hands up his chest to wrap around her arms around his neck, pressing herself closer to him. She pulled one leg up to wrap around his thigh while he kissed lower on her neck and collarbone, soft moans escaping her lips. She could feel his mouth curve into a smile as he kissed her, his hand brushing against her chest over her thin tank top. She lifted her arms for him and he pulled her top off, exposing her generous breasts. Bucky smiled at Liv and took one in his right hand, softly kissing her nipple while he watched her eyes close and her head tilt back. His tongue flicked over the bud gently, watching her face until he took her nipple in his mouth and rolled his tongue over it, sucking gently while using his thumb to tease her other breast. Liv arched her back. Every place Bucky touched her lit on fire. He moved his mouth to her other breast, licking and teasing her nipple before he moved lower, playfully tugging at the band of her pajama pants. He looked up at her while he kissed her stomach. She was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.

                “Liv, are you sure?”        

                “Yes, Bucky, please don’t stop,” she gasped, this had been a long time coming for the both of them. He smiled against her skin as he kissed her. She raised her hips a bit and he tugged everything off, leaving her naked underneath him. He kissed her hips and thighs, eliciting gasps of pleasure from Liv. He lay down between her legs, kissing her thighs more before he gently licked her clit. He felt her twitch slightly and grinned. He moved closer, licking and sucking on her until her hips shifted with a moan. Bucky looked up at Liv, with her head thrown back and slowly slid 2 fingers inside her, moving back and forth while licking her clit again until he could feel her start to tighten around his fingers. Liv was rocking her hips against his hand, one hand above her head gripping the bed with the other in his hair.

                “Bucky,” she gasped, “Bucky, I- “              

He felt her tighten again around his fingers and climax. He removed his fingers but continued to tease her clit. He wasn’t done yet. He kissed her thigh one more time before pulling himself forward until he was leaning over Liv. Wrapping his metal arm under her, he swiftly lifted her up until he was sitting, and she was in his lap.

She cupped his face and her hands, kissing him deeply. She tugged at the band of his pants this time, which he quickly pulled off. Liv tried not to gasp at the sight of him. She stroked him slowly, bringing out a groan from deep in his chest. Bucky pulled her close to him roughly, kissing her until he took her breath away. Liv straddled him until she slowly positioned herself on top of him and cried out softly as he entered her. Her back arched again and Bucky took a nipple in his mouth as Liv slowly rocked her hips, pushing him deeper inside her, slowly and then quicker, bringing both closer to completion. Bucky gripped her ass and groaned into her shoulder as they both moved faster. Liv gasped as he moved his left arm up her back, the cool metal a contrast against the fire inside her.

                “Liv,” he panted, “Oh god, Liv”

She gripped his back, digging her nails in to his shoulder while he fucked her harder.

                “Bucky! I’m cumming,” she moaned, “oh fuck, I’m cumming, don’t stop.”

He left her walls tighten in ecstasy as he spilled in to her, burying his face in her chest. She moaned when she climaxed, and it was all he ever wanted to hear for the rest of his life.

                Minutes later, they were laying back on the bed, flushed and slightly surprised. Bucky looked down at Liv while she traced the lines of the plates in his metal arm with a lazy smile.

                “You alright?” he asked. He was pretty sure he knew the answer, but it couldn’t hurt to ask.

                “Mm-hmm” she murmured, kissing the red star on his shoulder, “I’m wonderful. You?”

He watched her weave her soft fingers in to his hard metal ones and rest her head against him, smiling.

                “I’m perfect,” he whispered.

 

 

                Not much later, Bucky walked in to the kitchen after taking Finn out, only to find Liv standing in front of an open fridge in nothing but her underpants and one of his shirts. He smiled while he watched her shift from one foot to the other, trying to decide what to eat.

                “You know, walking around like is guaranteed to make Steve blush,” he teased her.

She turned and smiled at him like he was the only man in the world.

                “We are alone for the next 24 hours, so I am taking full advantage of it.”

                “I’m not complaining, believe me. This may be my new favorite view in the city,” he confessed, walking over to her and sweeping her up in a hug.

                “We clearly need to get you out into the city more,” she teased, kissing him.

He laughed and picked her up and deposited her on the counter, turning to the fridge.

                “Well, what are we having for Christmas breakfast?” he said over his shoulder.

                “Technically wouldn’t it be Christmas brunch?” she said, looking at the clock.

                “That’s still a thing? Really?” he asked while rummaging around in the fridge.

                “Yeah, wait _still_ a thing? Was it a thing for you??” She stared at his back.

                “Sweetheart, brunch was a thing before my time. And Christmas brunch means one thing,” he said while turning around, “Christmas cake for breakfast.” He straightened up and placed one of the leftover Buche de Noel’s on the counter. Liv clapped her hands and kicked her legs.

                “Best idea ever!! I think we just found our Christmas tradition!” she laughed.

Bucky laughed at how happy she was and the idea of a Christmas tradition with Liv made him ridiculously happy.

                “Ok, so what goes with brunch nowadays? Still alcohol?”

                “Oh god yes. Mimosas, usually,” her eyes lit up, “Are you telling me that you are not only saying I should have cake for breakfast, but you’re also encouraging day drinking?”

                “Yes ma’am,” Bucky replied, pulling orange juice out of the fridge.

                “This is it,” she said in awe, “I’ve died, and this is heaven. I have the hottest man alive giving me cake and booze.”

                Bucky’s laughter filled the room, and Liv joined in.

A few minutes later and one inquiry to FRIDAY about where the hell Tony keeps the champagne, Bucky and Liv were on the couch with cake and mimosas, trying to decide on something to binge on Netflix. Finn was happily munching away on his small pile of leftover turkey that Bucky decided he needed.

                “I can’t find this movie that Steve said I should watch,” he muttered, scrolling like crazy.

                “What was it? It might be on another streaming service thingy,” she offered.

                “The Hobbit? He said I’d like it.”

                “Yes!!! You’ll love it. Hold on, I think I can pull it up,” she said as he handed her the remote. A few clicks later, she had purchased all 3 movies and started the first one.

                “I’m so excited to watch this with you!” she admitted, “I love these movies.”

 

 

                “No, I understand that part,” Bucky continued, “but how did that entire party of dwarves not hear those 3 gigantic trolls steal their horses? They were 50 yards away!”

                “For the same reason there’s miraculously a random exhaust port on the Deathstar!” she replied, laughing.

                “I know, that made no sense either!!”

Liv threw her head back in laughter. Watching movies with Bucky might become her new favorite thing. At some point during the movie, she had draped her legs over his and he rested his hand on her legs. He was surprised at how comfortable they had become as a couple so quickly. Everything felt natural with her.

                “Ok, ready for the next one? Or do we need refills and change of snacks?”

                “Yes, and yes,” Bucky answered, “I’ll get the refills, you pick the food?”

She nodded, and they jumped up, heading in opposite directions. Bucky placed the glasses on the bar and glanced back at Liv, watching as she picked up the remnants of cake on the coffee table.

                “Hey Liv?”

                “Hey Bucky.”

                “How do you feel about a shower first?”

She turned, slowly and looked at the incredibly handsome man in front of her with the smirk on his face. Liv smiled at him and ran over, jumping in to his arms.

                “My place, though. I have better shampoo than you do,” she said, kissing him on the nose.

 

She stood under the showerhead, silently grateful that you can never run out of hot water at the tower, especially with how long she and Bucky had been in her shower. She could still feel the spots on her shoulders and back where he had kissed her, like he was burning himself in to her skin. She ran her fingers over her hips, thinking of how he had gripped her while he was thrusting behind her. She realized there was a chance her left hip would bruise a little, but she was guessing once they adapted to each other it wouldn’t be a problem. She took a little time in the shower, washing her hair. She had sent Bucky back upstairs, so he could change but also because she needed a minute for girl stuff like shaving and exfoliating. Liv was pretty sure they weren’t _that_ comfortable in their relationship yet, she chuckled to herself. Plus, she knew he had seen her tattoo by now, and she knew she owed him an explanation. She just needed to brace herself for it.

A little while later she was headed back up with wet hair and clean clothes, and found Bucky waiting for her in the living room. He smiled as she walked in and her stomach did a little flip.

                “Hey sugar,” she started.

                “Hey doll. Wait, what’s wrong,” he frowned; she looked different, “what happened? Are you alright?” He immediately jumped up and went to her, worried he had hurt her.

                “No! Bucky, I’m fine,” she smiled, wrapping him up in a hug, “I’m great. You didn’t hurt me. Honestly, I was nervous about something.”

                “Nervous about what, певунья?”

                She took a deep breath.

                “My tattoo. There’s no way you didn’t see it before. I figured you’d want to ask about it now.”

                He ran his hands down her back gently a few times as he held her.

                “I wasn’t going to. I figured you’d tell me when you were ready.” He’d seen the large tattoo that encompassed most of center of her upper back. Half a dozen flowers (peonies, he thought) with petals falling off some with two names set to the upper right and lower left of the flowers. _Emma Jean_ and _Benjamin James._ Bucky was heartbroken, knowing there was only one reason she’d have two names tattooed on her like that. He snapped of his reverie when he felt Liv pull away and lead him toward the couches.

                “I love that you were waiting for me to be ready, but I think I owe you an explanation. Especially since you’ve already tried to ask me about it once.” He smiled, remembering the day she was dressed in running gear and she had practically tried to melt in to the floor when he asked her if she had tattoos.

                “The tattoo is…those are the names of my children. I got it a month before they died,” she stammered.

                “Liv?” Bucky said softly, “I know.”

                “What?” she said, whipping her head up.

                “Well, I had figured. If it was anyone else’s names I didn’t think you’d have a hard time telling me.”

                “It doesn’t make you… uncomfortable or something?” she asked.

                “No,” he answered, placing a kiss on her forehead, “and it’s a beautiful tattoo.”

                She breathed a sigh of relief and fell back, resting her head against his shoulder. Clearly, she had worked herself up over nothing. If anyone understood talking about difficult subject matter from your past, it was Bucky.

                “I do have a question though.”

                “Shoot,” she said, sitting up.

                “Is McBride your married name or…?” he asked

                “Maiden name. I thought it would be easier to try and help me move on, so I went back to my maiden name. When I first started working again, some woman got nosey about me I guess, probably because I didn’t really talk to everyone, so she started googling me and found the obituaries of my family. Then everyone looked at me like I was a porcelain doll on the edge of a shelf. I couldn’t stand it, so I quit that job and had my name legally changed back to my maiden one. Maria and Pepper figured it out though after I started here. I’m pretty sure it comes up in the background check.”

                Just then her phone went off on the coffee table. She sat down and checked the message that came in from Wanda. It was a selfie with Clint’s son, partially named after Wanda’s brother. She smiled and sent back a ‘so cute! 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize if the smut wasn't up to snuff. I don't think I'm that great at writing it but it seemed like everything was building up to it.


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a slightly awkward morning and it's even worse because (in my head) Sam Wilson thoroughly enjoys watching Steve squirm.

“Buck? Liv?” Steve Rogers walked in to the tower common area, followed by Sam, dropping a few bags on the table. The place was empty, but seeing as it was close to 7am, they had expected that. Steve was surprised that Bucky wasn’t up yet though.

                “Anybody?” Sam asked him, looking around.

                “No, we’re the first back. But I don’t think Bucky is up here either,” Steve replied while starting to grab things from the bags they brought in.

                “No biggie,” Sam answered, “I’ll text Liv and let her know we’re back. She’s probably down at her place still.  Too cold for a run.” He pulled his phone from his pocket, fired off a quick text and before he could put his phone back in his pocket they both heard a familiar *bing* from down the hallway. Steve and Sam looked at each other.

                “……maybe she slept in Wanda’s room?” Steve supplied.

                “Yeah, maybe. You’re going to wake her up though.”

                Steve rolled his eyes and started down the hallway to Wanda’s room. He softly knocked first and then pushed open the door slightly.

                “Liv?” he said to an empty room. Weird, he thought. He could’ve sworn he heard it come from down here. He shrugged. Might as well check on Buck while he was here. Steve turned and walked further down the hallway toward Bucky’s room and knocked while opening the door.

                “Hey Buck- “he started and froze when he saw the bed. There was Bucky, asleep on his back with Liv curled up next to him, arm draped over his chest. He had his left arm curved around her back, hand resting on her hip, one finger curled under the band of her…..Steve turned bright red and whipped his body around. Liv was topless. He marched quickly out of the room, with Finn closely on his heels.

                “Hey Finn! What are you doing up here buddy?” Sam laughed when the dog ran out to him, “Was he in with Bucky again?”

                “Yup. Gonna take him out now,” Steve spouted, grabbing the leash off the hook and marching to the elevator door.

                “what the…. Steve!” Sam shouted, “Steve!! What’s up, what’s wrong?” Sam was picturing that Bucky had destroyed his room in a fit, something terrible. He was not expecting what came out of Steve’s mouth.

                “He was in with Buck. And Liv. She’s asleep on his bed. She has no shirt on. Did you know she had a tattoo on her back?!”

                “Well alright Tinman,” Sam laughed, “I didn’t expect that to happen that fast. Wait, I thought this was good, why are you all weird now?”

                “Maybe because I’m positive Liv would not appreciate me seeing her that naked?” he looked at Sam with raised eyebrows.

                Sam nodded. “Yeah, that’d do it,” he conceded, “Go take the dog for a long walk. I’ll start making breakfast and see if the smell of coffee will wake them up.”

                Steve nodded, clipping the leash to Finn as the elevator doors closed. Sam chuckled to himself. Livvie and the Tinman. Looks like it was a productive two days.

 

                “Finn?! Finn!!” Liv yelled, as she jogged out of Bucky’s room. She woke up to find his door partially open with Finn gone, so she ran out of the room without bothering to wake Bucky. She skipped to a stop when she saw Sam in the kitchen. He had heard her and stopped what he was doing to fold his arms across his chest and stare her down with a little smirk.

                “Well good morning Olivia,” he began, “Have a nice sleep?”

                “Heyyyyyyyy Sam,” she started, suddenly becoming acutely aware that she was wearing nothing but her underwear and one of Bucky’s shirts she threw on while running out of his room, “When did you get back?”

                “Not long ago. Steve took Finn out, if that’s what you’re wondering.” She sighed. Ok, so Steve got Finn. It slowly dawned on her. If Steve got Finn, he had to go in to Bucky’s room, and if he was in Bucky’s room, he probably saw her in his bed……oh shit. OH SHIT. Sam watched Liv’s face, highly amused as she realized with horror there was a solid chance that Captain America saw her mostly naked. She wasn’t sure if it was worse because he was technically a professor, or Captain America, or Bucky’s best friend. She looked over at Sam who was unsuccessfully trying to remain stone-faced.

                “noo…….” She whispered. Sam lost it. Throwing his head back, he laughed at full volume while turning back to the eggs on the stove.   

                “Livvie, you are priceless,” he laughed to himself.

                “What’s so funny?” came a sleepy voice from behind Liv. Bucky had woken up realizing he was alone in the bed and hearing voices, decided to walk out and see what was going on. He was surprised to find Liv in nothing but his shirt in the kitchen with Sam but judging by her body language she wasn’t exactly comfortable. He walked up behind her and, sliding an arm around her waist he bent to kiss her on the cheek. He loved that she leaned in to him and tipped her head back a bit, even if she didn’t realize she was doing it.

                “Morning sugar,” she whispered, “I think we’re busted.”

 

Later, after Liv borrowed a pair of leggings from Wanda’s room and Sam finished making eggs and bacon, they had a very awkward breakfast. Steve and Liv couldn’t look each other in the eye, Sam was trying to crack jokes about the situation, which was making Liv turn 57 shades of red and Bucky was boring a hole in Sam’s head with his glaring every time Liv got embarrassed. Especially when she finished her breakfast, dumped her plate in the sink and gave Bucky a quick kiss as she bolted past him to run down to her place and take a shower. Sam laughed, and Bucky glowered at him until Steve spoke up.

                “So…was it a good Christmas?” he asked awkwardly, to Sam’s absolute delight. His sides were going to hurt after today.

                Bucky stood up so fast the table jolted. He was having just about enough of Sam this morning. Shooting him one more stare, Bucky walked over to the couches and sat with Finn. Steve looked at Sam, mouthed ‘ _Really?’_ and followed Bucky while Sam just shrugged and started cleaning up in the kitchen.

                “Buck,” Steve started, “I didn’t mean it like that. Ignore Sam, you know how you two are.”

                Bucky just grunted.

                “Buck, come on,” Steve said, “Honestly though, how was it?”

                Bucky turned to face him, and Steve saw his face soften.

                “It was great. She’s great. She makes everything better, Steve. We barely left the tower, ate leftovers and takeout and watched a ton of movies but I wouldn’t have changed a thing. I’d do it again next year in a heartbeat.”

Steve was relieved to hear all of that, and a little surprised. He hadn’t heard anything of that nature from Bucky….ever, now that he thought about it.

                “Then I’m glad the two of you were here together,” he said, putting a hand on Bucky’s shoulder. They sat in silence for a minute when Steve turned to Bucky with a start.

                “Hey, how long as Liv had that tattoo on her back?”

                “How do you know she has a tattoo,” said Bucky, suddenly very still.

                “I walked in to your room this morning,” he answered while turning slightly red around the ears, “and that’s when I saw Liv next to you in your bed. She was on her stomach, mostly. And she had no top on. So. Yeah. That’s probably why she ran out looking for Finn.”

                Bucky burst out laughing. “So that’s why Liv was so weird this morning. I thought it was just because she ran out in the kitchen in my shirt and no pants and ran in to Sam. Sorry about that. Oh, how was Christmas at Sam’s?” he asked. He needed to change the subject. Steve didn’t need to know about Liv’s family or what happened to them. He was there too, they were both responsible. The problem with that was that Steve knew Bucky too well, especially to see when he was evading something. Steve narrowed his eyes at him for a second before telling Bucky the basics of his holiday at Sam’s and how much food their family made. Bucky breathed a sigh of relief. Steve was letting it go, for now. Later might be a completely different story.

                The rest of the team came home at odd points during the day, Clint and his small tribe of Avengers being the last to show, late in the day just before dinner. Liv ran to Wanda, giving her a huge hug.

                “Missed you!” she said squeezing her.

                “Missed you too!” Wanda answered, “Anything good happen while I was gone?”

Liv turned crimson as Sam started laughing behind her. Wanda’s eyebrows shot up and she looked from Bucky trying to hide a smile to Liv’s blushing face. She grabbed Liv’s hand and started dragging her to her room, shutting the door behind them.

                “Talk. Now,” she demanded playfully. Liv hesitated for a minute before launching in to everything that had happened over the last two days. Everything with Bucky before her panic attack, the dream she had, Bucky holding her and then waking up in his arms and …..the things that had happened immediately after.

 

                Out in the common room, Clint was showing Sam, Steve, and Bucky a video he took on his phone of the kids on Christmas morning with Wanda and Nat where they were interrupted by a very loud “WHAT OH MY GOD” coming from Wanda’s room, followed by sshhing and giggles. Bucky just smiled to himself and shook his head.

 

                “Jesus Christmas, Wanda shut up!” Liv fell over laughing. She hadn’t even gotten to what happened earlier or the gift yet and Wanda was asking a thousand questions.

                “Olivia McBride. I will not shut up, you deserve this and like a billion orgasms from that man.”

                “ohmygod,” Liv facepalmed.

                “No, I am serious. You never think of yourself, you organized an entire Christmas for him (and don’t you DARE tell me it wasn’t for him) in less than a week and you bought presents for everyone without a single thought of getting anything back. You cheer everyone on, you support, you worry, you’re everyone’s best friend. I don’t know if I would have been able to get through these last few months without you. I’m so happy that you are up here all the time and that we met. You need to be happy now, it’s your turn.”

                “Wanda,” Liv began.

                “No, shut up. I’m right. Do I need to get Nat in here? Besides, have you ever actually noticed the way he looks at you? It’s like he’s amazed that you’re real.”

                Liv just smiled. She’d never actually caught him looking at her like that, but if it was anything like the way she looked at him it probably made everyone around them nauseous.

                “Full disclosure Wanda, it wasn’t all naked time. We had cake for breakfast and he made mimosas. It’s like a Pinterest dream,” she confessed as they collapsed in to giggles, “Oh! And he got me this,” she leaned forward showing Wanda the little necklace.

                “That’s beautiful,” Wanda told her, “It matches the star on his arm!”

                They chatted a bit about Christmas at Clint’s, how cute his youngest was and how Wanda saw Nat coloring with Clint’s daughter. She’s pretty sure Nat would actually kill her if she knew Wanda had taken a picture.

                “It was interesting having Vision there, too. I never knew exactly where he was, so I was always afraid I’d walk to the bathroom and he’d catch me in underwear and a t-shirt.”

                Liv started laughing hysterically and grabbed one of Wanda’s hands.

                “I totally forgot to tell you what else happened!! Ok, so this morning…”

               

Out in the common room, Steve & Sam were getting dinner together when they heard a shriek of laughter coming from Wanda’s room followed by more laughter and Liv yelling ‘It wasn’t that funny!’ as she laughed herself. They just smiled and continued with dinner.

                “You know, I think we should talk to Tony about getting Liv a permanent place around the Team,” Sam remarked to Steve, “she’s good for the team.”

                “You’re not wrong,” Steve admitted, “but in what capacity? She can’t be a combat member, I don’t even think she’d want to.”

                “You didn’t see her in the med lab that day, did you? Girl was harder than Tinman’s arm. If she got combat medic training that’d be a major asset. Hill’s certified, she could do it. And Strange could teach her some moves. I think we should run it by Tony.”

                “How about we run it by her first,” said Steve.

                “Yeah, that’s probably a better plan,” Sam conceded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was short but good. I like it! Another! *smash*
> 
> (I'm double posting because I love y'all and that was a relatively short chapter.)


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a bit of filler, some domestic life with Buck & Liv and Steve learns something they've been trying to keep from him....

The next morning Steve walked in to the kitchen before sunrise, expecting an empty room but was surprised to see Bucky already with a cup of coffee in hand.

                “Hey Buck, nightmares again?”

                “Not in a while now, no. Liv got up early to take Finn for a run, so I thought I’d get coffee ready for her when she got back,” he responded, still looking out at the city.

                Steve smiled, grabbed himself a cup and went to sit next to Bucky.

                “I wanted to ask you about Liv,” Steve started.

‘Shit,’ thought Bucky. He knew Steve wasn’t going to let it go.

                “Ok,” Bucky sighed, “ask away.”

                “Her tattoos. There’s something going on with that, isn’t there? Or you would have answered me right away about it. Women nowadays have tattoos, I know it’s not as unusual as it used to be. And I know you know that. So, what’s the deal, Buck?”

                Bucky straightened his back and looked at Steve from the corner of his eye. He wasn’t sure if he should even tell him. Should he lie and make it something trivial? What if he did hear the truth eventually? He let out a slow breath.

                “I think that it’s not my story to tell and it’s something you should ask Liv. But if she decides that she isn’t ready to say anything, you drop it and never bring it up again,” he stated. It wasn’t a question.

                “Ask Liv what?” she asked, walking in to the kitchen with Finn. She looked from Steve’s serious face to Bucky’s apprehensive one and stopped.

                “Guys? Ask me what,” she repeated, “You’re making me nervous.”

                Bucky opened his mouth to answer her, but Steve beat him to it.

                “Yesterday morning, when I walked in on the two of you in Bucky’s room,” he started, turning faintly pink around the ears, “I saw your back.”

                Liv turned pale.

                “Liv,” Steve said gently, “I saw your tattoos.”

                She flitted her eyes over to Bucky, opening her mouth.

                “Liv, honey, you don’t have to tell anyone. Steve knows if you’re not ok talking about it he never brings it up again,” Bucky reassured her.

                She sighed. Liv walked over to the coffee pot, pouring a cup and methodically adding milk & sugar while they watched her. Finally, she turned around and faced Steve.

                “I will tell you but nobody else. I never wanted anyone to know here, but I also never planned on knowing all of you the way I do and being part of your family. So, if I say this, you never repeat it, you don’t ask me about it and you don’t look at me any differently. Ok?”

                Steve nodded, waiting.

                “Washington, Steve. I was there when everything happened, when the helicarriers came crashing down on the city.”

                Steve turned white and looked over to Bucky, who hadn’t taken his eyes off his Liv.          

                “I was there…with my family.”

                Steve stood up to walk to her, but Bucky stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

                “Let her finish,” he admonished. Liv shot Bucky a small smile before taking another deep breath.

                “I was visiting with my father, my husband and my twin babies, Emma Jean and Benjamin James. The two names on my back. I got the tattoo about a month before we went to DC. I won’t get in to detail but we had all gone out and I went back to the hotel because I forgotten the diaper bag. They shut down the roads and I was stuck in the hotel watching everything fall from the sky. If I had been with them I would’ve died too. Steve, look at me. I don’t blame you.”

                Steve had turned away, but she could see him wrestling with the weight of it all. He knew his actions had consequences, hell he thought one of those consequences had been when Bucky fell from the train, but this was different. Liv hadn’t chosen to be in a war, she got caught up in one. He looked at Bucky, horrified. _They_ did this to her. The two of them.

                “Bucky…we,” Steve stammered, unable to articulate exactly what it was.

                “Steve,” Liv called his name, “I need you to look at me. I need you to remember that I have chosen to come here every day, stay here every day. I’ve chosen to be with Bucky. I’ve chosen to be friends with you and with Natasha, everyone here. I could have hated you. I know that. But I know that you never meant to hurt anyone. You’re not HYDRA. And neither is my Bucky. He’s a victim.”

                “Liv, how can you be so calm and level about this?” Steve demanded. He looked from her to Bucky.

                “Because I went to a lot of therapy and I got more information about the situation when Maria Hill hired me, far more than she probably should have told me. You’re not reckless, you didn’t go in planning on destruction. My family and I didn’t plan on any of that happening while we were there, but life doesn’t care, Steve. Life is wild and unpredictable and chaotic. You should know that better than anyone. You crashed a plane into the ice in the 40’s after your best friend died and then you woke up 70 years later to a world with iPhones and miniskirts only to have your best friend show up as an assassin. How is that remotely predictable?”

                She walked over and grabbed his hands in hers, looking up at his face.

                “It took me a long time but losing them made me realize that I can’t just survive anymore. I needed to thrive. I wasn’t paying proper tribute to my family. I was just existing for years. I don’t hold grudges, Steve. It’s like drinking poison and waiting for someone else to die from it. I loved my job and I had Finn but nothing else. I liked my life, but I wasn’t thrilled to be alive every day. This may sound insane but being a part of this ridiculous family has helped me heal from the ones I lost and appreciate what I have. I still have bad days, sometimes the memories are too much but I have you, and Wanda and Nat, everyone. I have an anchor in Bucky. I’m ok Steve, and I need you to be ok with that. This is not your burden, alright?” she gave his hands a quick squeeze.

                “Besides Cap, you promised not to look at me any differently and I don’t want to have to go on CNN and tell the American public that Captain America breaks his promises,” she teased.

                Steve stared at her, in awe of the calm that she was radiating. She smiled at him one more time after letting go of his hands and went over to Bucky, placing a quick kiss on his lips.

                “Now, if you boys will excuse me, I need to leave Finn with you if you’re not busy. I’m getting something delivered today and I have to make room for it.”

                Steve snapped out of his stupor, shaking his head a bit to clear himself.

                “What are you getting delivered?” he asked.

                “A bigger bed!” she laughed as she walked to the elevators.

 

A few hours later, Liv had just sat down on her couch after shifting the contents of her bedroom to one side to make way for the new bed when there was a small knock on her door.

                “Come on in, it’s unlocked!” she shouted. Liv turned as the door opened to reveal Bruce walking in.

                “Hi Liv. FRIDAY said you wanted to see me?” he asked as he slowly walked in to her living room.

                “Oh! Yes, sorry. I’m so glad you’re here. Sit down anywhere. I kind of have something I want to talk to you about.”

                Bruce walked in and took a seat at the far end of the couch, Liv sat opposite.

                “What’s on your mind?” he asked.

                “My classes and where I’m headed, actually. I’ve been thinking about it a lot. I don’t know if it’s possible, but I’d like to pursue something in the medical field. Not a doctor, but maybe nursing? When I was in the bed labs with Maria and Sam before the team came in injured that one day, I realized I liked being there. It felt like I had a purpose. Sam even said I should look in to it more. And when I had to help Maria with Bucky, it felt right. I felt useful. I just don’t know what my next step needs to be.”

                “Liv, that’s great that you recognized your strengths and are trying to formulate a plan around them. I also heard from Maria that you excelled there, and if Sam agrees then it might be worth looking in to. I’ll ask them both and speak to Pepper. I’ll see what we can do, and I’ll get back to you after the New Year, does that sound good?” Bruce half-smiled at her.

                “It’s that simple?”

                “It’s that simple.”

                “Thank you, Dr. Banner! That takes a huge weight off my mind. Speaking of New Year’s, are you going to Tony’s party? I heard it’s supposed to be huge.”

                Bruce rolled his eyes.

                “They’re always huge and I always end up there, even though I always say I’m not going.”

                “I think that’s something you and Bucky have in common,” she confessed.

                “Possibly,” Bruce remarked, “but it seems like he’s got more of a reason to go now. Natasha said things are getting serious?” he smiled at her. Bruce liked Liv, she was an easy person to talk to that seemed to have a smile for everyone.

                “It’s going along,” she blushed, “and I like where it’s going. I’m not rushing anything.”

                “Well,” Bruce said getting up to leave, “I’m sure it’ll be fine. And I’ll talk to Pepper about you as soon as I can.”

                “Ok, thanks again!” shutting the door behind him. Liv leaned against the door and smiled. That seemed much easier than she had made it out to be in her head.

                “Miss McBride?”

                “Yes FRIDAY?” Liv asked

                “I believe your new bed frame is here, as well as the new mattress. Shall I send them up?”

                “Yes! Thank you, FRIDAY!”

Liv opened her door to meet them at the elevators, feeling a bit of confidence in herself that hadn’t been there in a long time. Her life was changing, and for the first time she wasn’t afraid of it.

 

                The next day Liv stepped off the elevators and headed to Pepper’s office. According to FRIDAY, it was an informal meeting, but Liv was still curious. She was even more curious as she rounded the corner and saw Wanda with Nat waiting outside Pepper’s office.

                “Hey! What are you two doing here,” she said as she walked up.

                “I was just about to ask you that,” said Nat, “I thought this would be team related since it was the two of us.”

                Liv shook her head and Wanda shrugged. She was about to open her mouth as Pepper stepped out her office door.

                “Oh good! You’re all here. How are you, Liv? How’s Sgt. Barnes? Wanda, good morning. Natasha, it’s good to see you,” Pepper greeted them.

                “Morning Pepper, Bucky’s doing fine, I’m assuming. I think he’s training with Steve right now,” giving Pepper a quick hug, “I don’t mean to be rude, but what’s going on?”

                “Yes. Well,” she smiled, “I suppose you’ve heard that Tony’s New Year’s Ever party is going to be in full swing very shortly and I know none of you have gone out to get anything to wear yet.”

                “I was going to take them out tomorrow, actually,” began Nat.

                “Right. Well, were you aware that Tony changed the even to black tie? Because it’s very short notice.”

                Liv groaned while Wanda shook her head and Nat just made a face. They had nothing that went with black tie at all. Did Bucky even own a tux? Did any of them aside from Tony?

                “That’s what I thought. So- “she led them down another hallway- “I intervened in a very Tony Stark way, I apologize.”

                Pepper opened one of the conference room doors to reveal that the table and chairs had been cleared away, replaced by 4 individual dress racks, a stack of shoes near each rack and a small woman standing over to the side with what looked to be a series of silver briefcases.

                “Pepper…. what is this?” Wanda asked, slowly stepping in to the room.

                “Our shopping trips. The racks are personalized to your sizes, there are shoes to match (also in your size) and Vivianne over here has a selection of accessories for each of us.”

                Liv and Wanda just gaped at Pepper, while Natasha immediately went to the rack labeled with her name. Pepper smiled at the two of them.

                “I’m calling this a business expense. If Tony wants a black-tie affair, he can certainly pay for it. I’ve also called in a favor from a friend and we’ll have hair and makeup on the day of. Come on, girls. Let’s get started!”

 

                “Wait, so she just had a ton of dresses brought here, like a department store? And there were shoes and necklaces and all that jazz to go with it?” Bucky asked from the couch later that evening.

                “Yes! It was amazing! I’ve got the whole outfit together, I didn’t have to pay for it and I didn’t even have to leave the tower. Oh! _And_ Pepper is having people come in on the day of the party to do our hair and makeup. I’m telling you, if I could go back in time and tell 16-year-old me about this, her head would explode.” She answered as she walked over to the couch with her glass of wine. They had decided to try and act like a semi-normal couple and hang out in Liv’s apartment that night. She made Italian and he brought wine he had “acquired” from Tony. It was a surprisingly average night. They ate, they cleaned up the kitchen together, and she had tried to convince him to watch The Princess Bride while they washed dishes. Bucky was elated. He felt like a normal man having a normal night with his girlfriend at her place.

                “So… do I get to see the dress?” he asked, as she sat next to him.

                “Excuse you, it’s a ballgown. I own a ballgown now, sort of. And I thought about it but, no. You’ll see it at the party just like everybody else,” she teased him, “What about you? Do you need to get a tuxedo or something?”

                “I do not,” he laughed as Liv mock-gasped in shock, “I have a very nice tux that Sam says is ‘unconventional’ but I’m not sure what that means.”

                “Oh god,” Liv choked out, “please don’t tell me it’s neon pink or paisley or something equally hideous.”

                “No, it’s nothing bizarre,” he laughed, “it’s just not black.”

                “Really? What color are we talking about here, cherry red? Because we will look ridiculous and I kind of want to see Tony’s face for that.”

                “Blue. Deep blue. Does that meet your approval?”

                “Yup,” she said looking at him over her glass, “we’ll match.”


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Happy Avengers New Year!

Bucky stood near the bar, fidgeting with his jacket. This was worse than the last party. At least then he could ditch the jacket, this time he was stuck in a monkey suit. Steve walked over with Clint, talking about switching up the training schedule.

                “What do you think Buck, should we bring back group training once a week?”

                “whatever,” he replied, adjusting his bowtie for the 5th time.

                “Whoa Grampa,” retorted Clint, “having issues with tux?”

                Bucky glared at him as Natasha walked over and fixed his tie.

                “I look ridiculous and Liv isn’t here yet, so I’m stuck talking to a farmer and America’s golden boy, but yeah, it’s definitely the tux,” he snarked back.

                “She’ll be here in 5 minutes,” Nat told them as she smoothed the lines of her black satin dress, “she was right behind Wanda and I. Besides, she won’t be that late. Hardly any of the other guests are here yet and she doesn’t want to make a dramatic entrance.”

                “Who doesn’t want to be dramatic?” asked Sam as he walked up to flag down one of the bartenders Tony had hired for the night.

                “Olivia. Nat says she doesn’t want everyone looking at her again like last time,” supplied Clint.

                “If she didn’t want everyone looking at her then maybe she picked the wrong dress,” murmured Steve, looking over Bucky’s left shoulder. She had slipped in from the hallway near the elevators and was standing by the doorway, looking for someone. Bucky turned to see what Steve meant and his breath caught in his throat. She looked stunning. His tux was the same deep shade of blue as her floor-length dress, but hers was covered in little silver stars that glittered when she moved. Her hair was pulled back in a low, loose bun with tendrils of her chestnut hair curled around her face and nestled against in the hollow of her collarbone was his little red star. He watched her smile at Bruce as he walked over and crooked an arm for her to link hers into as he escorted her in and he felt that familiar surrounded-by-sunlight kind of feeling spreading in his chest. Bucky watched at how her face lit up at something Bruce was saying and how her happiness bubbled over to him. Bruce actually looked glad to be there for once. He realized they were headed over to him, so he turned to the bartender and ordered a gin & tonic.

                “So, I’ll work out the details this coming week, but I think we can move forward from here,” Bruce was saying as they walked up.

                “I can’t thank you enough Dr. Banner,” Liv babbled, “this is the most amazing opportunity and you’ve done some much and now this… I honestly don’t know what to say.”

                Bruce smiled and stared at the floor for a second. “Please call me Bruce. And everyone deserves the chance for something like this,” he stressed, “I’m glad to help you. Right now, however, this is where I leave you. I’m going to find somewhere quiet to observe until Tony finds me out.” He smiled at Liv again as he turned and walked back through the growing crowd.

                “What was that about?” Bucky asked while handing Liv her drink from the bartender.

                “Something very good,” she smiled at him as they were interrupted by Steve & Sam.

               

                A little while later, music was going, and people were dancing but Thor had pulled Bucky to the far end of the bar for some Asgardian mead. Liv was at the other end of the bar with Steve, listening to Bucky stories from when they were younger. Bucky could see her as she threw her head back in laughter and he smiled at the way the star at her throat glittered. To him her smile lit up the room, it lit up the whole city. He was jerked out of his musing by Thor clapping him across the back.

                “She is a good woman, Soldier of Winter,” he declared, “there is not a person here who could say a bad word in her favor.”

                “Thor, I honestly don’t know how I got so lucky,” he admitted.

                “Yes. She is a worthy partner and would bear strong children,” he nodded solemnly, causing Bucky to sputter in his drink.

 

                “Uh-oh,” Liv said looking over Steve’s shoulder, “looks like our boy might need help.” Steve turned and they both watched Bucky coughing and giving Thor the oddest look. Steve smirked.

                “I told him that mead was no joke,” as he started over to the pair.

                Liv ordered another drink and then turned to prop her elbows behind her on the bar, looking out at everyone. It was by far the fanciest party she’d ever been to, she felt amazing in this dress and Bucky looked insanely handsome.

                “Are you having a good night?” came a voice to her right. Liv turned and looking right in to the face of King T’Challa.

                “I am, actually,” she answered, turning to grab the drink the bartender had placed at her elbow, “And you, your Highness?”

                “It has been interesting so far.”

                “Is this your first New Year’s Eve party at the tower?” Liv asked.

                “Yes, but I was not expecting anything any different from the stories Captain Rogers has told me.”

                Liv laughed. She could only imagine the stories Steve could tell about Tony’s parties.

                “It is nice to see Sgt. Barnes in a much better mind set than when I last saw him. He seems much improved. I have heard this is partially due to your influence,” he continued.

                “I don’t know if that’s true at all,” Liv blushed, “that’s a lot of pressure to put on someone. He’s just Bucky to me.”

                “Whatever it is Miss McBride, I suggest you continue on the same course. He is a changed man. I am glad that your souls have found each other,” he said with a small bow before walking off. Liv was surprised, but very pleased at his statement. She hadn’t had much interaction with T’Challa before this, but he knew Bucky as well as anyone in the tower did, maybe better than a few. She was still looking after where he had disappeared into the crowd when Sam walked up.

                “Hell of a dress, cupcake,” he complimented, taking the spot next to her.

                “Thank you,” she replied with a mock curtsey, “I think I clean up pretty well.”

                “I agree,” said Bucky as he walked up with Steve, “you look beautiful. But…”

                “But?” she laughed, “there’s a but attached to that?”

                “No! I mean, you look amazing, just different. Because you’re not as tall as the last time,” he sputtered.

                Steve just stared at Bucky while Sam and Liv laughed. She looked around for a second before leaning closer to the three tall men standing around her.

                “Ok, I’m gonna show you a secret,” she said in a low voice, “ready?”

                Liv lifted the hem of her floor-length dress a few inches and let her foot peak out. Sam burst out laughing again.

“You wore your chucks?” he said, still laughing while Steve just smiled and shook his head. Bucky beamed. It was completely Liv.

“Excuse you, these are not my regular chucks! I bought new ones. I even put little silver stars on them! They match the dress perfectly,” she replied.

“They look great. You look great,” Bucky assured her, pulling her close for a small kiss.

“Thanks sugar,” she smiled, leaning against him, “you’re looking pretty good yourself. In fact, I’ve gotta say I’m kind of enjoying all my guys in black tie.”

                “Well,” started Sam, “I do make this look good. Now let’s go make it look better,” he said as he grabbed Liv’s hand and pulled her to the dance floor. After the success of the last party’s dance floor, Tony opted to bring it back, which was a little change from the usual New Year’s Eve party. The DJ was back, and the dance floor wasn’t as empty as last time. There was at least double the amount of people attending this party. This time Sam and Liv were moving around to the sounds of ‘Uptown Funk’ in a throng of people.

                “I hope she doesn’t rope me into swing dancing again,” said Steve, resting against the bar with Bucky as they watched Sam & Liv dance their hearts out.

                “Why, afraid of breaking a hip?” Bucky taunted.

                “Ha ha, you’re hilarious,” Steve deadpanned, “No, I am not. As much fun as it was, it felt…wrong. Maybe that’s not the right word.”

                “It brought back too much,” Bucky supplied.

                “Maybe,” Steve mused.

                “You gonna tell her?”

                “Absolutely not,” Steve replied, “she was so happy about it and I know she meant well. You were right about her though. She does so much for everyone else, I don’t think she even realizes that she forgets about herself.”

                “See, that’s exactly what I was saying,” Bucky insisted, “she does it all the time! I mean, Jesus, Steve part of the reason she kept what happened to her family from us was to protect _us_. Have you ever met anyone that thinks like that? Sometimes I don’t even understand how she’s a real person.”

                “I know, Buck. She’s something else,” Steve admitted as they watched her dance. Liv was smiling and singing along with Sam and Wanda, who had joined them almost right after they got out there. The song had smoothly transitioned into Outkast’s ‘Hey Ya’ while they had been talking and Bucky laughed at how Liv’s face lit up again. She literally twinkled from the crystals on her dress. He couldn’t take his eyes off her.

                “Buck!” Steve elbowed him.

                “What, did you say something?” Bucky answered, still watching Liv. If Steve had been talking, he hadn’t heard a thing.

                “You know what Buck, no. It’s not important,” he replied with a smile at his best friend, slowly backing up to join Rhodey a few feet away.

                Half a dozen songs later Liv was back with Bucky at the bar, watching Tony pull Pepper out on to the floor for a slow dance. He had wrapped an arm around her waist while Liv leaned in to him.

                “певунья, what was the good news you had from Bruce earlier,” he asked into her hair.

                “Oh!” she said, putting her glass on the bar, “he figured out how I can continue in the field I want to, with classes and everything. So, you know how I’m studying here but I’m affiliated with NYU, right?”

                Bucky nodded, “And your major depends on their available list of majors. Yeah, Wanda explained it to Clint one day while I was in the kitchen.”  
                “Exactly, but I wanted to head into a medical field, but I didn’t think there was anything available there in that general field that wasn’t primarily becoming a doctor. I spoke to Bruce about it a few days ago, since he helped set everything up for me. It turns out that NYU has a paramedicine major, which I am fully eligible for. I’m going to be starting that after the New Year! He’s going to arrange my classes with Dr. Strange and he’ll be taking care of some as well.”

                “Liv, that’s fantastic news!” Bucky was elated for her. He pulled her in for a tight hug and kiss, feeling her smile against his lips that turned into a laughing yelp as he wrapped his arms around her waist tighter and picked her up, spinning in a half circle.

                “I know! I’m so excited to get started,” she chimed.

                “Get started on what?” asked Sam as he walked up to flag down the bartender.

                “Paramedicine with NYU,” she answered, lowering to the ground but keeping her hand in Bucky’s, “Bruce arranged it.”

                “Livvie, are you serious?” Sam blinked, “Really serious? Paramedicine?”  
                “Yeah…” she answered slowly, “why?”

                “Because I said something about this to Steve a few days ago. How you should be here as a combat medic. You were focused as hell when Hill and I were training you and tough as nails when they brought everyone in. Maria is certified to train you, she could give you lessons on everything you’d need. Hell, girl, you could just work here as team medic. I wanted to bring it up to Tony, but Steve suggested we talk to you first. I was planning on asking you tomorrow.”

                “I think this calls for shots then,” declared Clint, popping up from behind the bar and scaring the shit out of everyone, with a very subtle ‘JESUS FUCKING CHRIST’ coming from Liv.

                “what..” he asked, looking at Bucky, “so no shots?”

 

                It was almost midnight and Bucky couldn’t find Liv. She had gone off to tell Wanda about the news with her school discipline and he hadn’t seen her since.

                “Liv!” he shouted, trying to look over the dance floor. Nope, nothing. He walked back over to the bar, no Liv. He started toward the terrace when he heard a familiar voice behind him.

                “Hey Bucky!”

He whipped around. There was his Liv, trying to squeeze by everyone in between the dance floor and the far end of the bar.

                “Liv!” he smiled. People were starting to count down already.

                _10…….9…….8…….7_

He started pushing through people while he watched her elbow her way to him.

                _6…….5…..…4…….3_

He saw her start to run to him and he picked up the pace. She stepped up on to a chair to get around people moving in her way and literally jumped to him, trusting him to catch her in time.

                _2…….1! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!_

Liv And Bucky were too preoccupied with their midnight kiss to hear the beginning strains of Auld Land Syne pick up. She smiled against his lips as she pulled away.

                “Good thing I wasn’t in heels, huh?”

               


	19. Chapter 19

There was a knock on her door, but Liv barely registered it. The knock came again but she didn’t move.

                “Liv?” Bucky called softly, opening her door a crack. Seeing her sitting on her living room floor, surrounded by books and notes he walked in and shut the door behind him.

                “Hey Finn,” he murmured to the dog as he trotted over to him, “Liv, are you alright? Did you hear me knock?”

                “What? Oh yeah... Anatomy is just….so much information,” she looked up at him for the first time since he had walked in, “Hey sugar. I’m sorry, I’m feeling a little overwhelmed.” She gave him a kiss as he sat down next to her on the floor.

                “Can I help?” he asked, looking over everything she had in front of her. Holy shit. This _was_ a lot of information.

                “Yes! I made flash cards for a bunch of stuff, think you can help me later?”

                “Of course, but right now you need to take a break. You’re going to burn out. Come upstairs, have dinner and I’ll come back up and help you tonight. I’ll even take Finn out,” he promised.

                She smiled and stretched her back, hearing the cracks from sitting in one position too long. “No, I’ll come with you. Feel like going for a run before dinner?”

                “Sounds good. Actually, while we’re upstairs can you try to convince Clint not to decorate for Valentine’s Day? Wanda caught him looking up pink…everything on Amazon.”

                “Really? It’s like a week and a half away,” Liv said as she walked in to her room to change, “I’ll be ready in a minute, wait there.”

                Bucky stood up and looked for Finn’s leash while she changed, “Nat is pretty sure it’s because he is trying to convince Vision that Valentine’s Day is a national holiday or something.” He looked back and caught a glimpse of her back as she walked across her living room. She had already gotten her running shorts on but she wasn’t self-conscious about her tattoo with him anymore, so she didn’t feel the need to cover her back anymore. This time, she was looking for her sports bra so he got a nice view of her toned, bare back. Bucky could see the muscles she’d developed from working with Nat in the gym 4 times a week. Since they decided that Liv was going to be training as a sort-of combat medic then she should at least have some way to defend herself. Natasha had taken it upon herself to train Liv in basic combat and how to handle a firearm. Liv turned out to be a natural with a weapon but the hand-to-hand was a little more difficult. Nat said she was determined and focused, so she’d get there. He watched one of their training sessions from the doorway when Liv couldn’t see him. She looked amazing and he was a little turned on watching her.

                A minute later she walked out of her room, pulling her hair back in a ponytail and smiled at Bucky.

                “Ready sugar?”

                “Let’s go, doll.”

 

 

Wanda could hear Liv and Bucky laughing about something as they walked off the elevators right as she was putting food on the table. They rounded the corner and Liv’s face broke out in to a smile. Ever since she had started the medical track with Dr. Strange and Bruce, Wanda had leaned toward an education in international diplomacy so she was in video lectures/discussions with T’Challa, as well as lessons on government with Steve and Rhodey. The girls hardly ever saw each other and Liv was thrilled that Wanda was there. She missed her friend.

                “Hey!!” she said running over, “I missed you! I got your text earlier but I was studying anatomy. The skeletal system is a lot and I get a little distracted. I’m sorry.”

                “I know,” confessed Wanda, “that’s why I sent Bucky down. Bruce said you’ve been so focused the last few weeks, I think he was getting worried.”

                “Honestly,” she whispered, leaning in, “I’m worried I’m not smart enough for this.”

                “Bullshit,” said her best friend, “what’s really going on?”

Liv sighed. Even when Wanda wasn’t poking around in someone’s head she could read people pretty easily. Probably some vibes rolling off people she never told Liv about.

                “I’ve been having dreams lately. Of the twins. And I’ve been afraid of getting pulled into the downward spiral again so I thought that if I just put all of myself into studying I wouldn’t have time to think about anything else and I could starve the depression out, maybe? Does that even make sense?”

                “It does,” Wanda nodded, “You thought you could wait it out by distracting yourself. How is that working out for you?”

                “It isn’t,” her shoulders slumped, “And I didn’t want to bring it up, not really. I feel guilty and like I’m disappointing you.”

                “Liv, you couldn’t disappoint anyone,” Bucky said gently, “Everyone can see how hard you’re studying and we were worried you’ll burn yourself out but if there’s more to it you need to tell me. Or at least Wanda.”

                “Yeah cupcake, listen to Tinman,” Sam added walking in from the hallway, “you’re gonna end up shorting out.”

                “What is this, some sort of intervention?” she joked, looking over to Steve who walked in followed by Clint & Natasha. Nobody laughed.

                “Holy shit you guys, seriously?! I need to pass these tests, I’m studying! I know it’s a lot but there’s a lot of information,” Liv was incredulous. Had she been that isolated in the last 4 weeks?

                “They’re being a little dramatic,” Natasha intervened, “it’s not an intervention, it’s just us trying to convince you to at least take the weekend off. It’s Thursday. Study today, study tomorrow and then stop at 4:30, come up here and hang out. We’ll do something fun on Saturday night.”

                “You need to unwind. I need to unwind,” Wanda added, “come on. Please?”

                Liv paused, taking in all their faces. Steve looked like a concerned mother hen and Sam was suddenly her older brother. She smiled and sighed.

                “Ok, fine. I’m in. You’re right, I need a break.”

                Wanda clapped with joy and Bucky instantly looked relaxed. Liv was touched with how worried he was for her. She walked over to him and rested her chin on his chest, looking up at him.

                “You’re always looking out for me, aren’t you?” she murmured to him.

                “Yes ma’am. And I always will,” he promised with a kiss on her forehead, “now sit down and eat. I promised you food and then flashcards.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was super short. Here, have another one.


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was by far my favorite chapter to write. That being said...
> 
> Who's up for Avengers karaoke?!?

It was Friday at 4:25 and Liv was sitting on her couch reading over her anatomy notes. Bucky had gone up and hour ago to get things together for dinner after she had promised twice to put her books down by 4:30. She was a page away from finishing up the muscular system when suddenly it sounded like a rhino was trying to break down her door. It was so loud she almost fell off the couch in surprise.

                “LIIIIIV!!!! TIME TO STOP!!!!” yelled the rhino, sounding an awful lot like Clint.

                “Oh my god, I just put my book down!” she yelled back, opening the door. Outside were Clint, Sam and Wanda. Clint’s arms were still raised from slapping at her door and he stared at her with a cocky smile as the three of them pushed past her to walk in to her place.

                “Oh, ok cool, you just walk in here now,” Liv muttered under her breath.

                “Aww, that’s the matter cupcake?” teased Sam, “Don’t you want to see your favorite people anymore?”

                “Yes, of course I want to see you guys but-Clint stop putting my books under the couch- I was just about to- don’t ask Wanda to put them up there!-“ she tipped her head back and took a breath, “I’m trying to get ready when you three psychos walked in and started fucking up my shit!” Liv collapsed on the couch in frustration. She was almost positive her notes and books were up in the faux-industrial exposed pipes, up in the cathedral ceilings. Sam looked over at her exasperated frame.

                “Livvie, honey, we’re just trying to get you out of here,” Sam crooned to her, signaling behind his back to Wanda to bring the books down, “Come on. Get changed if you want, Clint will take Finn out and we’ll all go upstairs and eat. Steve ordered Chinese from that place you like. And you can even pick the movie.”

                She opened one eye to look at him, “Did he get extra egg rolls?”

                “Yes he did.” Sam replied. Wanda stifled a giggle behind him.

                “And the good orange chicken?”

                “Yes ma’am.”

                “Ok!” she jumped up and walked in to her room, “give me 5 minutes. And we’re watching Men in Tights!”

                Sam and Wanda fist bumped and Clint tripped over the dog leash behind them.

                “Get it together, man, come on,” Sam muttered to him.

 

 

                A short time later Liv was full of great Chinese takeout and snuggled up against Bucky as Sam got the movie ready.

                “How is this different from the Robin Hood movie that Rhodey made us watch?” Steve asked while sitting down with a bowl of popcorn next to Liv.

                “Well, first off it doesn’t have the brilliant Alan Rickman,” she said grabbing popcorn from the bowl, “and secondly this is a comedy that’s meant to be a comedy. It’s campy on purpose.”

                “Rude!” shouted Rhodey from across the room, batting away the popcorn Liv tossed at him.

                “Also, this Robin Hood has an English accent,” paraphrased Clint, laughing with Liv to a confused Bucky and Steve.

                Liv leaned up and kissed Bucky on his cheek as the opening music started.

                “You’ll love it, I promise.

 

 

                Later that night, laying in bed with Bucky in a blissful afterglow, Liv started giggling.

                “What, what’s funny?” Bucky asked, pulling her closer to him.

                “I never thought I’d see Steve laugh that hard,” she replied, “he was cracking up!”

He smiled and nuzzled her hair for a moment.

                “You know, I think I can remember one time when I was trying to impress a girl at a dance once. It’s hazy but I remember falling on my ass and I thought Steve was gonna die from laughter.”

                “Poor Bucky,” she crooned, “Did you even impress the girl?”

                “I have no idea,” he admitted. He inhaled the scent of her skin at her neck, kissing his way down to her collarbone.

                “Bucky!” she admonished, half pushing him away.

                “What,” he teased, kissing lower on her chest, “you can’t tell me you’re tired already?”

                “No! But Nat said to get some rest beca-oh my god…-because tomorrow was going to be a late night!” she closed her eyes as he brushed over her breasts with his lips.

                “Well then doll,” he answered, kissing her stomach and looking up at her through his eyelashes, “why don’t you just let me do all the work?” He smiled against her skin and continued to kiss her further down, leaving soft love bites along the way. He grinned at her as he gently parted her legs and pulled the sheets over his head, leaving her to arch her back as he found exactly where he wanted to be.

                “Bucky- oh god..” she gasped, and she closed her eyes and gripped the sheets above her head.

               

That night Liv was certainly grateful they were in her apartment, floors down from the rest of his team. They wouldn’t have gotten a lot of sleep with that kind of noise happening.

 

 

                The next morning Liv and Bucky were walking in to the kitchen after their morning run with Finn when Liv was greeted with her favorite pastries and fresh coffee, courtesy of Steve & Wanda.

                “That smells amazing!” she inhaled deeply, “You guys didn’t have to do this!”

                “It was fun,” Wanda said, “Steve got to see our favorite breakfast place.”

                “Oh, you took him to that place on Greenwich Street?” Liv was already putting croissants on a plate while Bucky poured her coffee.

                “Yeah, it was nice,” Steve handed her a tart from the other box.

                The four of the settled at the table, Wanda telling Liv about the classes over video chat with T’Challa while Bucky & Steve went over the training schedules for next week. Soon enough Nat, Bruce, and Clint filtered in, followed by Tony and then Sam.

                “Hey, Buck?” Liv leaned over to her boyfriend, “Can you explain exactly why that looks suspicious?” He followed her eye sight over to the far end of the table, where Nat and Tony had their heads close together in conversation.

                “Uh…because that’s suspicious as hell?” he answered, “Steve. Look.” He nodded over to the redhead and her new partner in crime.

                Steve made a face and shrugged at Bucky. Not much he was going to be able to do if the billionaire and the super spy were cooking up a plan.

                “Anyway,” Liv rolled her eyes, “what’s on the plan for today?”

                “Do what you want during the day but be back up here by dinner!” Tony ordered before Bucky could even open his mouth.

                Liv blinked.

                “Didn’t you say there was a list of movies you had that you wanted me to see?” Bucky reminded her, “We could make a day of it, if you want?”

                “Yes! Movie marathon! We need supplies again though,” Liv grinned.

                “Whoa, whoa, whoa, what movies are we talking here?” interrupted Clint, “Not some Titanic bullshit, right?”

                “They made a movie about the Titanic!?” Steve and Bucky shouted in unison.

                “Oh man, that’s a whole other movie night,” Sam laughed.

                “I was thinking 80’s action movies, starting with Predator. Clint, does this meet your exceptionally high standards?”

                He nodded enthusiastically with a mouth full of pastry.

                “Ok great, they’ll meet you at your apartment in an hour,” agreed Nat.

                “Wait, what?” Liv looked at Bucky, who shrugged again.

                “Yeah, you can’t be up here during the day,” Tony jumped in, “because I said so.”

                “…. K,” Liv stared at him, “I’m taking some booze though. Because I said so.”

Bucky smiled while Steve looked mildly scandalized. Sam got up and hugged Liv.

                “You’re my favorite, I just want you to know that.”

 

Liv raced downstairs after breakfast to speed-clean her apartment & shower while Bucky showered at his place and gathered supplies for the marathon. An hour later there was a knock on her door and everyone aside from Tony & Nat piled into her place. Sam had his arms full of champagne while Clint carried the orange juice. Wanda brought the rest of the pastries.

                “Hey! Come in, come in,” Liv motioned opening the door wider.

                “Hold on! Hold that open!” she heard from the hallway. Liv looked down and saw Steve struggling to get something out of the elevator.

                “Is that…is that a fucking loveseat?” Liv stared at Steve.

                “Yes, it is! Buck said you didn’t have a lot of places to sit and that your place is big enough for this. Tony basically has an entire mansion worth of furniture in storage.”

                “Ok then. Looks like I get a loveseat,” she held her door open while he maneuvered it in.

Steve set it down by the end of her other couch and straightened up.

                “Yeah, but…. you’re gonna want to keep that door open.”

Liv started to say something but was nudged in the shoulder by the ridiculously large TV Bucky was carrying.

                “Bucky, no,” she started.

                “Bucky, yes!” Clint yelled, turning around, “Let’s get this bad boy hooked up!”

Liv had to admit, it was a hell of a lot easier to arrange furniture and wall mount a huge TV while you had two Super Soldiers holding things up with one hand. It wasn’t too bad to watch, either.

                With Sam playing bartender during an 80’s movie marathon the day flew by. He and Liv practically fell off the couch laughing over Bucky & Steve’s reactions to the Predator monster reveal. Before they knew it though, Clint was announcing it was time for dinner. Mainly by standing up, yelling ‘FOOD TIMES!’ and walking out the door.

                Wanda, Bucky, & Liv stepped off the elevator only for Liv to practically walk smack dab in to a pile of electrical equipment sitting in the foyer.

                “Whoa!” Bucky pulled back on her arm just in time. 2 huge speakers, yards upon yards of wire and 2 large black boxes were stacked up in front of them.

                “What the hell…” Liv stared.

                “Hey! In here, wayward children!” Tony shouted from the common area.

The three of them rounded the corner and Liv’s jaw dropped. Speakers, more cords & wires, what looked like a DJ booth and…was that a mic stand? Liv’s eyes lit up like a Christmas tree.

                “TONY!! Is this what I think it is?” She raced over and grabbed his arm, “Seriously, don’t fuck with me here!”

                “Language, Stitches. You’ll scandalize the Capsicle,” he grinned at her over violet lenses, “If you think it’s karaoke then yes, you’d be right.”

                “I’m SO EXCITED!!” she squealed. Liv was actually doing a little happy dance. Bucky walked over to the table and helped Steve get food out.

                “We’re doing what now?” Bucky leaned over to Steve.

                “Karaoke. Don’t worry, nobody is going to make you sing,” Wanda promised as Nat walked by narrowing her eyes at them, “but we figured that this was something Liv might enjoy.”

                Bucky watched Liv look over a huge binder with Sam and Tony, pointing out different parts and smiling. She was practically ecstatic, so this had to be a good thing. Tony had ordered pizza, even getting some deep dish (Liv’s favorite) so it was clear to everyone except her that this was a weekend to snap Liv out of a rut. Wanda could tell long before Liv said anything that she was getting depressed again. Bruce could see it too; her eyes weren’t as bright, and she wasn’t smiling as much but the last straw had been when Bucky said she sobbed in her sleep one night while he held her, not daring to wake her up.  After he had told Steve they decided enough was enough, Liv needed her support system whether she asked for it or not.

                “Hey, come get pizza you three!” Wanda called over. Sam and Liv were still looking over songs in the binder while Tony was hooking up the last of the wires. Everyone was eventually gathered around the table while they debate was on over who starts off karaoke night. Sam volunteered Bucky for the job but had to quickly duck as a cup was launched at his head. Tony pointed to Steve who balked and practically yelled that Nat should start. Nat glared and said Liv should, but Liv turned bright red, so Bucky stepped in saying that Sam should begin. Finally, Vision decided they’d draw straws.

To Tony’s horror, he lost so it was Stark up to bat. The first few notes of Elton John’s “I Found Love” floated through the speakers while Tony took the mic, eventually shocking everyone with a decent voice. Once he was done, he tossed the mic to Liv.

“You’re up Stitches,” he smirked, “Follow that.” Liv just rolled her eyes and walked up after selecting her song from the list.

“Time to speed things up, kids,” she grinned. Blondie’s “Hanging on The Telephone” started up and Nat cheered.

               

 _I'm in the phone booth, it's the one across the hall_  
If you don't answer, I'll just ring it off the wall  
I know he's there, but I just had to call

                Liv sang with the right amount of Blondie-esque attitude while she danced around their “stage”. She even did her best Molly Ringwald in The Breakfast Club dance impression. She almost stopped mid-song to point out that Bucky was tapping his foot to the beat!

                               

 _I had to interrupt and stop this conversation_  
Your voice across the line gives me a strange sensation  
I'd like to talk when I can show you my affection  
Oh I can't control myself  
Oh I can't control myself  
Oh I can't control myself  
Don't leave me hanging on the telephone

She finished with a flourish and took a small bow as Clint & Nat cheered. Tony, who was apparently the only who hadn’t heard the video of Liv singing in the shower had to pick his jaw up off the floor. Bucky was clapping along with Nat while Steve whistled. Liv stepped down and tossed the mic to Rhodey, who had walked in halfway through her song.

                “You’re up Rhodey!” She grinned as he groaned, “Hey, you show up late this is what you get.”

                “Fine…,” he grumbled. He stepped up and picked a song and Sam burst out laughing as soon as it started while Liv was sporting a gape-mouthed smile.

                               

 _Artificial amateurs, aren't at all amazing_  
Analytically, I assault, animate things  
Broken barriers bounded by the bomb beat  
Buildings are broken, basically I'm bombarding

                “I can’t believe he chose this one!!” Liv was amazed. Alphabet Aerobics was HARD and Rhodey was killing it. She and Sam rocked in place along with him even joining in at “ _holla atcha homeboy”._ He stayed with it as it got faster, the rest of the group cheering him on until he got to the last few bars.

 

 _Yellow back, yak mouth, young one’s yaws_  
Yesterday's lawn yard sell our yawn  
Zig zag zombies, zoom in to the zenith  
Zero in Zen thoughts, overzealous rhyme ZEALOTS!...

                He stood straight up with arms out and dropped the fucking mic. Liv, Sam, & Clint went nuts, Steve and Tony clapped while Nat, Wanda and Bruce cheered. That was insane.

                “You’re up, Cap,” he said, picking up the mic and tossing it to Steve. He caught it and looked a bit nervous but stood up and strode over to pick his song.

                “I can’t compete with that, so…here goes,” he mumbled while the music started. Tony nodded approvingly, and Liv put her hands to her lips, leaning in to Bucky’s shoulder. This was one of her favorite songs.

 

 _Just yesterday morning, they let me know you were gone._  
Suzanne, the plans they made put an end to you.  
I walked out this morning and I wrote down this song,  
I just can't remember who to send it to.

Steve had placed the mic back in the stand and was standing in front of it, eyes on the monitors while the room was silent, listening. He didn’t have a fantastic voice, but it was perfect for James Taylor’s “Fire & Rain”. Liv was watching Steve with a small smile on her face, remembering how her mother sang this to her when she was a child, and how she taught her to play it on the guitar. It reminded her of her lost babies, in a way and she had to hold on to Bucky a little bit tighter to keep the tears from spilling over. Judging from Steve’s face, there was someone lost he was thinking of as well.

 

 _Oh, I've seen fire and I've seen rain. I've seen sunny days that I thought would never end._  
I've seen lonely times when I could not find a friend,  
but I always thought that I'd see you baby, one more time again, now.

Steve blinked and softly smiled as the notes faded, going to sit down as the group murmured their admiration for his voice with a smattering of applause.

                “Nicely done, Cap,” commented Bruce from the corner. Steve just nodded his thanks as Sam stepped up.

                “I guess I’ll keep the vibe going a bit,” and chose his next song. Steve threw his head back and laughed while Clint just shook his head.

                “Of COURSE he chose Smokey Robinson,” he muttered.

 

 _Baby let's cruise, away from here_  
Don't be confused, the way is clear  
And if you want it you got it forever  
This is not a one-night stand  

 

Sam also left the mic in the stand but sang his heart out and danced with the stand. Liv swayed in place to the song as Bucky tightened his arm around her waist and pulled her in. Maria Hill had come in during Steve’s song and sat in the back corner next to Bruce. She was even moving slightly to the song as Sam sang.

 

 _You're gonna fly away, glad you’re goin' my way_  
I love it when we're cruising together  
Music is played for love,  
Cruising is made for love  
I love it when we're cruising together

 

Sam took a bow and stood the stand upright again before stepping down, pointing to Liv.

                “Let’s go, cupcake. I know you’ve got a ballad in there somewhere.” She rolled her eyes and went to stand up but stopped when Bucky put a hand on her hip.

                “You don’t have to, you know,” he murmured. He didn’t want music triggering something in her. He saw how she was when Steve sang, no matter how well she thought she hid it.

                “It’s ok, sugar,” Liv kissed him softly, “I know exactly which one to do.”

She walked up, flipping Sam off as she passed and picked her song. She stepped up to the mic, adjusting it and winked at Bucky which the beginning chords came through the speakers. Wanda smiled and gave her a thumbs up.

 

 _You could be my silver springs_  
Blue green colors flashin'  
I would be your only dream  
Your shining autumn, ocean crashing 

Liv sang in front of the mic never looking at the monitors, she knew this one by heart. She’d loved Stevie Nicks since she was a kid and Fleetwood Mac got her through more than a few breakups in high school. She poured her heart into it, and for the first time it occurred to her that she was holding back from Bucky. She felt like he she didn’t deserve to be happy, that it was too soon, and she shouldn’t move on yet, and she was scared that HYDRA could get him and make him forget her. She glanced over to him as she sang and felt her heart beat a little faster; he looked like a man under a spell. She wasn’t even sure if he’d blinked.

 _Time casts a spell on you, but you won't forget me_  
I know I could have loved you, but you would not let me  
I'll follow you down 'til the sound of my voice will haunt you  
You'll never get away from the sound of the woman that loves you

The song faded away as Liv started to step down but stopped when Bucky stood up. She looked at him questioningly, but he crossed the space to her in 3 steps and swept her up in his arms and gave her the deepest kiss of her life. It was filled with promise and comfort and it felt like home. He felt like home. She smiled against his lips as a chorus of ‘whoooo!!’ and whistles burst out behind them. Bucky lowered her down as they laughed, and he looked down in to her eyes, placing a small kiss on her forehead. Steve watched it all, grateful that Liv and Bucky had found each other.

                “Alright, that’s enough mushy bullshit,” Tony decided and picked another song, this time grabbing the mic stand and doing a little kick with the music.

 

 _Ziggy played guitar, jamming good with Weird and Gilly_  
And the spiders from Mars. He played it left hand  
But made it too far  
Became the special man, then we were Ziggy's band

 

Everyone but Bucky and Steve let out a yell & raised their beers as Tony channeled David Bowie as best he could. Steve just let out a laugh as Tony began to strut around the “stage”, using the mic like a pro. Liv and Wanda let out wolf whistles while Clint heckled and threw popcorn.

 

 _Making love with his ego Ziggy sucked up into his mind_  
Like a leper messiah  
When the kids had killed the man I had to break up the band  
Oh Yeah

 

Bucky rolled his eyes at the lyrics. If this song wasn’t written about Tony, he didn’t know what was. He’d sit through anything if he got to see Liv laugh like this though. She was singing along and dancing with Wanda like they were at a concert. The last strains of guitar faded out as Tony took a few bows until Clint forced him to sit back down.

                “I think it’s time you all learned from the master,” as he sauntered up to the mic after picking his song. Tony threw his head back and laughed when ‘Uptown Girl’ started. Even Bruce smiled.

 

 _Uptown girl_  
She's been living in her uptown world  
I bet she's never had a backstreet guy  
I bet her momma never told her why

 

By the end of the first verse, everyone was clapping to the beat while Clint sang with the least serious face Liv had ever seen on him and that was saying something. He was pulling out some serious greaser dance moves and even Bucky was laughing at some parts.

 

 _Uptown girl_  
You know I can't afford to buy her pearls  
But maybe someday when my ship comes in  
She'll understand what kind of guy I've been  
And then I'll win

Liv and Wanda had started to sing back up behind him and Clint was living for every minute of it. Nat had pulled out her phone and started to record Liv and Wanda attempting choreography while Bruce sat next to her singing along. Clint pulled Liv and Wanda up to sing in the mic with him as the end of the song approached, while he took a selfie of the three of them. The song ended and was met with applause from the rest of the team as the trio took a bow and left the stage. Natasha stood up slowly and walked over to the mic, carefully picking out a song. She looked Clint dead in the eyes.

                “I can’t have you showing me up,” she purred.

 

 _I saw him dancin' there by the record machine_  
I knew he must a been about seventeen  
The beat was goin' strong  
Playin' my favorite song

 

“Holy shit,” whispered Liv. Nat was delivering an impressive Joan Jett impersonation which was both sexy as hell and terrifying. Bucky nudged her and nodded over to the rest of the group. Steve, Rhodey, Tony and Bruce were watching with their jaws open while Clint looked slightly annoyed, but Sam looked terrified. Wanda & Maria were thoroughly impressed. Liv winked at Nat, who smiled through the song. She moved around the stage like a cat, enjoying every minute of confusing the hell out of the boys.

                “I don’t know if she’d fuck me or kill me,” Rhodey leaned over to Tony.

                “Both. It’s both,” Tony answered, never looking away.

Nat’s song ended as abruptly as it started, never even giving the boys a chance to catch up. She sat down next to Bruce with a satisfied smirk.

                “What. Was that,” he murmured to her.

                “Validation, darling. Sweet validation,” she whispered, patting his cheek gently. Sam jumped up and grabbed Liv’s hand while Tony and Steve were still recovering from Natasha’s show.

                “Come on cupcake, we’re doing a duet!” Liv jumped up, grabbed her beer and followed him, whispering in his ear as he nodded enthusiastically. Sam picked the song and Tony handed Liv a second mic. The music began, and Sam stepped forward, hamming it up.

 

 _Listen baby, ain't no mountain high_  
Ain't no valley low, ain't no river wide enough baby  
  


Liv stepped up next to him, being equally cheesy.

 

 _If you need me call me no matter where you are  
No matter how far _ (Sam) _don't worry baby_  
Just call my name I'll be there in a hurry  
You don't have to worry.

 

Sam rested an arm on Liv’s shoulder as they sang the chorus together, smiling while Liv winked at Bucky.

 

 _Cause baby there ain't no mountain high enough_  
Ain't no valley low enough  
Ain't no river wide enough  
To keep me from getting to you babe

 

This time it was Wanda recording the video while Nat danced with Bruce. Rhodey cheered with Tony and Bucky just watched his girlfriend with a smile on his lips. She may have been up there with Sam, but she was singing just to him. He loved her voice, his little певунья and it sounded even sweeter when she was happy. They were reaching the end of the song and Bucky had to shake his head and smile and how Sam was dancing around the stage with Liv.

               

 _Don'tcha know that there_  
Ain't no mountain high enough  
Ain't no valley low enough  
Ain't no river wide enough  
Ain't mountain high enough  
Ain't no valley low enough

They repeated the refrain until the music faded. Sam and Liv did an exaggerated bow to each other, then to the team and then walked off as Steve walked up. Liv fell into Bucky’s lap with a kiss, laughing.

                “I don’t know whose idea karaoke night was, but it was genius. This has been amazing,” she smiled at him.

                “You’ll have to thank Nat and Tony for this, it was all on them,” he assured her. Just then, Steve’s song of choice floated around them and Liv turned her head slowly, grinning.

                “No way….” She whispered.

 

 _Just a small town girl_  
Livin' in a lonely world  
  


A cheer went up from the team and next thing Steve knew, everyone was singing along.

 __  
Just a city boy  
Born and raised in South Detroit  
He took the midnight train  
Goin' anywhere

 

The whole team, even Bucky joined in. Liv’s jaw dropped when she heard him.

                “When did you learn this?!” she smiled, yelling over the guitar break.

                “I’m allowed to have my secrets!” he grinned. Bucky picked Liv up and swung her around while they continued singing. She looked back at the team and laughed, it was straight out of a movie. Steve had his arm over Clint’s shoulder, singing in to the same mic, Tony was singing his heart out next to Rhodey & Maria, Bruce still off to the side but still part of the song, next to Nat & Wanda who were using beers as microphones, facing each other. She giggled to think how fast it would’ve been on every social media platform if they had gone out to an actual karaoke bar instead of doing it at the tower.

 

                                _Don’t stop believing,_

_Hold on to that feeling_

_Street lights, people….._

 

The song wore to a close and ended with a cheer. The team filtered off to bed after a little while, everyone agreeing there was no way they could top that performance. Nat reminded Liv that she still wasn’t allowed to study on Sunday and gave Bucky a look to make sure he didn’t let her. Liv just rolled her eyes but had no intention of pushing the matter.

 

 

                The next morning, Liv woke up to sunlight streaming through her window, tangled up in Bucky’s arms. He groaned softly as she shifted, turning to lay her head on his warm chest while he tightened his arms around her. She smiled to herself as flashes of Bucky’s lips on her skin and his skin against hers flew through her mind. She ran her hands absent mindedly across his chest, tracing little spirals into his skin. Liv felt a small shiver run through him as she got closer to his side.

                “Good morning my певунья,” he murmured into her hair, kissing it softly.

                “Good morning sugar,” she answered, stretching up to kiss his lips. They lay in bed next to each other, neither one wanting to break the spell first. Bucky lazily ran his fingers down Liv’s back while she placed little kisses on his chest.

                “Bucky?” she murmured.

                “Hmm?”

                “What is that word you keep calling me, is it Russian?” she ventured softly.

                “It’s Russian. It means songbird. Because of your voice,” he answered between kisses in her hair. He inhaled deeply, she smelled like a combination of her perfume and her shampoo and it drove him crazy. He pulled her up closer into his arms and kissed her neck gently.

                “Oh,” she smiled, tilting her head to him, “that’s beautiful.”

                “Mmhmm,” he whispered into her skin, “because you’re beautiful.” He pulled her close and crushed his lips against hers, snaking his arms around her waist as she pressed her chest against his. He smiled to himself when she let out a small gasp and arched her back as his cold metal hand ran up her spine and pressed flat on her back, holding her close to him. Liv wove her fingers through the hair at the back of his neck and shifted her hips against his, shivering at the groan that escaped from him. Bucky slid his hand down to grip her thigh and lift her leg up higher while he pressed his hips against her. Liv could feel how hard he was against her inner thigh and moaned. She wanted to have all of him inside of her. Smiling, she moved his hands and held them over his head while sliding her leg over to straddle him. His look of surprise was well worth it, especially after she repositioned herself, guiding him into her and felt him slide inside. She moaned, rocking her hips and placing a hand on his chest to steady herself. Bucky gripped one of her hips to keep her pressed against him while his flesh hand teased her nipple with his thumb. He knew it was one of the many things that could push her over the edge and he could feel the coil in his own stomach tighten as she moaned and rode him harder.

                “Bucky,” she gasped, “I’m so close!”

                “Not yet, певунья, wait for me,” he growled.

She could feel the waves cresting as Bucky thrusted deeper into her, stretching her walls. She fell forward a bit and braced herself with one hand against the headboard of her bed, getting closer and closer to completion. Bucky sat up slightly, wrapping an arm around her and staying inside her fully as he did so he could flick at her hard nipple with his tongue, her moan of pleasure almost enough to send him over the edge as well. She arched her back, gasping his name as her wave crested and she came, feeling him spill into her at the same time. They held on to each other for a few minutes catching their breath until Bucky gently shifted so she was next to him on the bed. Liv sighed, never wanting to leave this moment with him. Bucky placed feathery soft kisses against her neck and collarbone and looked over at her.

                “I love you, Olivia McBride,” he rasped, heavy with emotion. She blinked and cupped his face in her hands. The Winter Soldier, her Bucky was staring up at her with uncertainty. She kissed him deeply and looked in to his eyes.

                “I love you, James Buchannan Barnes,” she whispered back, tears forming. For the first time in four years, she felt like she was home. He swept her up and twirled her around her bedroom, laughing at her playful scream. She loved him! He had been so afraid that she wouldn’t be able to love him, not truly, because of everything. Because of his past, because of how it affected her, because of how she’s guarded herself the last few years.  She wasn’t sure she remembered how to love someone else. But she loved him, and he could feel it in her kiss, in her arms around him, in every moment they were together.

                “Bucky!” she laughed, “I need to take a shower!” Liv tried to struggle out of his arms but they both knew she wasn’t going anywhere unless he let go. Bucky gently placed her down next to her bathroom door with a kiss on the nose.

                “You shower, I’ll figure out breakfast,” he decided. She smiled at him and went it to the bathroom to turn the water on, blowing him a kiss on the way. The she froze and turned back around slowly to stare at him.

                “Bucky…” she started.

                “Yes?” he answered, waiting.

                “You’ve been calling me songbird for weeks, but you only heard me sing last night…” she narrowed her eyes at him.

                “Oh. Well,” he rubbed the back of his neck, “funny story…”

                “I’m waiting,” she smirked, raising an eyebrow.

                “Remember your girl’s night with Wanda? Um…your kind of…sang in the shower the next morning,” he sheepishly answered.

                “Oh my god and you all heard me?! Why didn’t anybody say anything?!” she turned crimson and put a hand on her face.

                “No! Well, I mean yes, but not like that. Wanda sent Nat a video of you in the shower. NOT LIKE THAT. Of you singing. While you were in the shower,” he sputtered while Liv’s jaw was on the floor.

                “There’s a video?!”

                “Yeah, sorry sweetheart,” he said reaching for his phone on her nightstand. A few swipes and pressing on the screen later and he pulled the video up for her to watch. She was dumbfounded but wrinkled her nose about halfway through.

                “I sound terrible,” she complained.

                “No! I love this video, you sound beautiful,” he insisted.

She looked up at him, narrowing her eyes at his tone.

                “Bucky Barnes,” she asked slowly, “How many times have you watched this video?”

Now it was his turn to blush. He quickly closed out of the video and tossed the phone on the bed.

                “That’s not important. Shouldn’t you be in the shower now? I’ll throw something on and take Finn out. I’ll grab breakfast or something. So, go shower. I’ll get in when I get back,” he frantically went around her room throwing clothes on and hopping on one foot to get his shoes on his feet. Liv just watched him with a bemused look on her face. Yup, this was the man she fell in love with. What a giant dork.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, what did y'all think of karaoke? I put a lot of thought in to the songs. Some felt right for the character and some were little nods to the actor. I hope y'all enjoyed it!


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a little bit of a filler chapter, but it moves things along in the story nicely. Enjoy!

The next few months went by as uneventfully as could be for the residents of Avengers Tower. Liv continued to study with Bruce and Dr. Strange but had Bucky to ground her and pull her away from all of it for at least 24 hours when he thought she was neglecting herself. Once Liv was a week away from what would be considered her Anatomy final she pushed herself hard. She basically sequestered herself in her place for 2 days, studying with programs Tony had uploaded to Friday. Her favorite (and most helpful) was the 3-D full body model where she could isolate it to the different body regions or organ systems, making for specific areas to study. Bucky still came down and made sure she got a morning run in and had something in her system other than coffee, but he left her to study, even sleeping in his place on the upper floors so she wouldn’t get distracted.

 The few missions he had gone on in the interim were successful, if not uneventful. It didn’t stop Liv from worrying every time he left and constantly touching the little red star she always wore. Sam usually stayed near her when Bucky was gone, if wasn’t on the mission. Much to Bucky’s chagrin, Sam and Liv had become best friends and he was her other support when Bucky wasn’t there. They hadn’t had a massive, team encompassing mission in a while, and Liv was dreading when that was going to happen, leaving her alone in the tower for who knows how long.

                On this particular morning Bucky headed to the elevators only to find Finn sleeping in the dog bed by the common room.

                “Hey buddy, what are you doing up here?” giving Finn a soft belly rub, he stood up and looked over to the couches. Liv was sitting on the floor, notes and papers spread out before her, working with a miniaturized 3D body model.

                “Liv, sweetheart, what are you doing? It’s 6am! Your final isn’t for another 2 hours,” he admonished her, “How long have you even been up here?”

                “About an hour, don’t worry,” she muttered, never tearing her eyes off the model rotating in front of her. Bucky sighed and walked in to the kitchen. If she wasn’t going to relax, he might as well make her some coffee.

                “Thank you, sugar!” she yelled from the floor, hearing him fumble with the coffee maker. He smiled as he got the coffee out of the pantry. He loved her focus and determination. It was why Nat said she was steadily improving in hand-to-hand combat and her pistol skills were impressive for someone with no training.

                Minutes later he walked over with an oversized cup of coffee the way she liked it, placing it on the coffee table near her. Bucky gave her forehead a quick kiss and then grabbed Finn’s leash to take him out. He glanced back to her as he walked out, and she was looking at a skull model, turning it over in her hands.

                “Occipital condyle, ethmoid bone, crista galli…” she mumbled quietly. Bucky just smiled at her and shook his head slightly. She was going to need a hell of a night out when this was over.

 

                3 1/2 hours later, Bucky was once again pacing in the common area while Liv was in with Dr. Strange taking her final exam and lab practical. Steve sat on the couch reading while Nat and Clint walked back in from training.

                “She’s not out yet?” Nat asked, settling herself on the edge of a couch while Clint hopped up on the counter near the kitchen.

                “Nope,” mused Steve, turning a page, “and he’s been here the whole time.” Bucky glared at him and continued fussing.

                “Dude, you’ve got to chill with this,” Clint chided through a mouth full of apple, “she’s prepared, she’ll be fine. Go beat the shit out of something in the gym.”

                “I tried to tell him that,” replied Steve. Nat jumped up and grabbed Bucky’s arm.

                “Let’s go, you’re coming with me,” she said, pulling him out of the common area.

                “What, no! What if she finishes early?” Bucky protested.

Nat stopped and whirled around to face him.

                “Barnes, you will get your ass out of this tower right now. You and I are going out to get Liv something nice as a surprise for passing her finals with flying colors. Did you even think to do that? Huh?” she poked him in the chest accusingly.

                “Kind of, I mean, I had no idea what to do…” he sputtered.

                “Having flowers delivered is a lovely touch but she’s been working her ass off for this and it deserves something a little better than that. And you know damn well she won’t be getting out early, it’ll be 11:30 before she is done. And then she has Bruce’s final at 1. Now move your damn ass before I have Steve move it for you.” She turned around and headed towards the elevators, not waiting for him to follow. Bucky just gaped after her. How did she know he was having flowers sent to Liv? Dammit, he thought, she was right though. Liv needed something better than flowers. Something practical. A lightbulb went off in his head. That was it, he knew exactly what he needed to get her!

                “Nat! Wait up!” he shouted, jogging to the elevators.

 

Liv walked in to the common area at 11:45, pen smeared on her cheek and hair up high in a messy bun, right in to Bucky and Sam setting up lunch they had delivered.

                “Hey, there’s our favorite scholar,” Sam yelled to her as she walked in, “How’d it go, cupcake?”

                “Oh my god,” Liv mumbled, “There was so much. I think my brain quit. Is that from that Jewish deli on Orchard? Please feed me.” She walked over to the table and sat down, putting her forehead on the glass.              

                Bucky brought her a huge pastrami sandwich and her chemistry notes, knowing she’d ask for them in a minute anyway.

                “You’re perfect and I love you,” she smiled, looking at the food.

                “Is that to me or the sandwich,” he joked.

                “Both, sugar. Right now, it’s both,” she answered, biting in to her lunch and flipping through her notes while Sam laughed.

                Clint and Tony joined her after a minute, followed by Nat and Vision. The group sat and ate lunch, chatting lightly until Dr. Strange walked out of the hallway. Everyone got silent.   

                “Ms. McBride?” he began, “I have your scores if you’d like to know them now.”

                Liv turned white and swallowed hard.

                “How’d you get it done so fast?” Clint asked.

                “Please, I was mentally grading the practical as she completed it,” he scoffed, “Now, Ms. McBride. Scores?”

                Putting it off wouldn’t change her grade at all, might as well get it done now. Grabbing Bucky’s hand, she nodded.

                “Let’s hear it,” she mumbled.

                “I don’t know why you’re so solemn. You scored a 96% on your exam and a 90% on your practical. I suggest you look over the muscular system again, but you did very well. I’m impressed,” he said to her with a small smile.

                A cheer went up from the group and Bucky picked up Liv to spin her around as Steve and Bruce walked in from another room.

                “What happened?” Bruce asked.

                “Our pupil did exceedingly well on her anatomy final,” Strange told him, “I hope she does as well on your chemistry exam.”

                Bruce looked over to Liv where she was beaming at Bucky and hugging everyone. He smiled and walked over to congratulate her with the rest of the team.

                “Ms. McBride, one more thing,” Strange interrupted the celebration, “There is something I want to speak to you about, in private if you please,” motioning for her to follow him into the hall by the elevators. She turned to Bruce and Tony who both shrugged and followed Strange.

                “The hell was that about?” mused Tony, watching Liv walk out.

                “Who knows with that guy,” said Sam, “Hey Bruce, think she’s ready for your final?”

                “Oh, she’s beyond ready,” Bruce admitted, “She just needs to work on her self-confidence. She’s been ready, but she keeps thinking she’ll fail.”

                “I’ve been trying, but I don’t think I’m the best person for the job, in this department at least,” admitted Bucky.

Just then, Liv walked back in to the room in a daze. She went right past everyone and dropped into a seat at the table.

                “Liv?” Bucky ventured, “What happened?”

                “I…he…holy shit,” she whispered.

                “Livvie?” Sam walked over and sat across from her. She blinked and looked over at him then up to Bucky.

                “He said he worked it out with a former colleague of his that I can work a few days a week at Metro-General for the next 18 months. That she’d train me as a triage nurse. Stuff like this doesn’t just happen, does it?” She looked to Bruce.

                “Holy shit,” Bruce answered, “he must have a lot of faith in you if he’s fast tracking you like this. I’ll talk to Maria and see what we can do here in terms of medical training in the meantime.”

                Liv just nodded. She felt like she was in shock. This was a huge step, but it was in the direction she wanted to move in. She looked over to Bucky, who was a heated conversation with Tony a few feet away. Nat sat down next to her before she could even say anything to them.

                “Listen, don’t think about this right now. You have another final to ace and then we’ll all go out for dinner somewhere nice with a bar and you’ll get smashed and have crazy sex with your gigantic boyfriend, ok?

                “I didn’t need to hear that last part,” Steve turned bright red as Liv cracked up.

                “She’s right cupcake,” Sam jumped in, “focus on this next part so we can go get drunk and make the super soldiers babysit everyone.” Nat high-fived him without taking her eyes off Liv, who nodded in return. They were right, she had another final to take before she could focus on what Strange said, and on whatever was bugging Bucky. She stood up and looked over to Bruce.

                “I’m ready to take this now, if you’re ready for me. I know it’s a little early,”

                “Nope, it’s fine. I set it up in my lab while you were taking your other exam. We can go right now,” he assured her, heading down, “I’ll see you in 5 minutes.”   

Liv got a hug from Nat and a pat on the back from Steve, who voiced his confidence in her.

                “Bucky?” Liv took a step toward where he was still talking to Tony, “I’m heading to take my chem final now.”

                He rushed over and enveloped her in a hug.

                “You’re going to be great певунья, don't worry,” he murmured to her, “I’ll be here when you’re done.”

                She smiled and gave him a quick kiss, then left to follow Bruce to his lab. Bucky watched her leave then went back over to Stark with a face like thunder.

                “Ok you two, what’s going on?” Steve demanded in this best Captain voice. Bucky and Tony stopped talking and looked over to him.

                “Your murder child is afraid Liv will leave if she starts work at Metro General and he wants me to fix it,” Tony stated.

                “That is not what I said! I said she’ll leave once she’s _done_ working there. She’ll be trained, Maria will train her here and then she’ll graduate, and she’ll be gone,” Bucky huffed at Tony.

                “Did it even occur to you that it was the plan all along that she might move on from us?” Tony sniped, “that she might want to? Or did you think that she’s met you now, so she’ll never need anything else but that? Jesus, Barnes.”

                “Whoa, Tony, that’s enough,” interrupted Steve as Nat moved to stand between them, “Bucky is only saying what we’re all thinking. Liv’s become part of the family, even you have to see that.”

                “Besides, Stark,” Sam stepped in, “You and I have even had a conversation or two about making Liv part of our full-time medical staff. Hell, we could use a combat medic on occasion.”

                “Has anybody even asked Liv what she wants?” Clint interjected, “You know, instead of deciding where she may or may not go, has anyone considered what she wants to do?” He looked pointedly at them.  

                “I know she doesn’t like the thought of leaving the tower, but she thinks it’s her only option once she’s finished with school,” admitted Nat.

                “What?” Tony said, “She told you that?”

                “Yeah Tony, what else would she be thinking?” Nat prodded him, “Have you decided on some plan with her but forgot to tell anyone about it?”

                “Probably. FRIDAY knows, that counts,” Tony said as he paced the room.

                Steve sighed and looked at the floor. This friggin team…

                “FRIDAY, does Tony have any documents regarding Olivia McBride?” he asked the AI.

                “Yes Capt. Rogers. Boss has been drawing up plans to make her a full-time employee of our medical floor, in charge of triage and possibly mission-related medical needs.”

                They all turned to look at Tony.

                “You’re fucking impossible,” Nat said to him. Clint shook his head. Sam just stared at the ceiling.

                “Well, it’s a good plan, right? And for once we can all agree on it?” Tony smirked at Steve, “But nobody tells her, understood. I think we can all agree this would be better as a surprise towards the end of her stint at Metro.”

                They murmured their assent, while Bucky shot daggers from his eyes at Stark, who made a hasty retreat. Clint and Nat left to arrange dinner while Sam, Steve and Bucky sat in the living room, waiting for Bucky to calm down.               

                “Come on, Buck. You had to know there was no way Stark was going to go to all this trouble with her and not reap the benefits after the fact,” Steve said to him.

                “I know, it makes sense when you put it like that,” Bucky admitted, “but when suddenly it was right there, the opportunity for her to go and leave, it just…I don’t know.”

                “It scared the shit out of you,” supplied Sam, “Because she’s great. None of us want her to leave. She’s family and she’s the only one aside from Cap that brings out the good side of you.”

                “Thanks, asshole,” Bucky muttered.

                “Buck, listen. Even if she does leave, it’s her choice. She gets to decide on where her life goes, but I don’t think she’d just up and leave you here, nor do I think she’d decide without talking to you. Not after the way I’ve seen the two of you over the last 6 months,” Steve assured him.

                Bucky nodded. Steve was right, but it didn’t make it any easier. She had a job here, at the tower if she wanted it but what if she didn’t? What if she wanted something better, what if she wanted someone better? Bucky stood up and walked over to Finn, who had been asleep on his dog bed this whole time.

                “I’m taking him out for a bit, I need to clear my head. Text me if Liv gets done before I get back,” he muttered as he grabbed the leash and walked out with Finn jumping at his heels.

                Steve and Sam watched him walk out and looked back at each other.

                “You know it’ll send him for a downward loop if she leaves,” Sam told him.

                “I know. I don’t think she will though. I’ve got a feeling,” Steve admitted. The two of them stood up and started clearing away the lunch remnants as Liv was a floor down, sweating about her test and Bucky was moping through the city.

                He walked with Finn through the chilly streets thinking about what he had said to Steve. It wasn’t only that he was in love with her. Bucky knew that hundred of other couples didn’t work together but still had good relationships but what if she left the city? Or what if she stayed in the city and didn’t have time for him anymore, until she gradually drifted away from him. He knew he was grasping at things with this but any thought that resembled Liv not being in his life scared him to death. She made him feel whole, like he was a regular man. He didn’t have nightmares when he was with her. She loved him as he was, not something he was before the war, not who he could be in the future. She loved who he was when he woke up in the morning and when he curled up in bed next to her at night. And he loved everything she was; he loved her sleepy walk to her coffee pot first thing in the morning and how she looked when she jogged. He loved how focused she was when she studied and how her face lit up when someone opened a gift from her. He loved how her voice sounded when she laughed and when she moaned his name and when she sang to him at night. She was more than just his sunlight now, she was everything.

                Bucky turned with Finn and walked back to the tower. He knew that Liv was aware he loved her, but he needed to tell her everything. He needed to get it out before it burned a hole in his heart trying to escape. Liv deserved to know.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My college classes have started back up again, but I'm only there in the mornings so I should still be able to post daily until all the chapters are up!


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's a significant time jump in this chapter, but it's clearly labeled (like I literally labeled it). Maybe someday I'll do a one shot or two from that time period. Things are moving along for the couple in this one though...

“Congratulations to our favorite medical undergrad, who just aced all her finals!” Tony raised a glass to Liv, followed by the rest of the team. Tony had arranged for a private room with an open bar at Tavern on the Green and the whole team had assembled for Liv’s dinner, even Thor.

                Liv blushed at Tony’s toast, but murmured her thanks to everyone as they raised a glass to her. Bruce had Vision grade her lab practical and her exam immediately after she finished, and she came out with a 90 on both. Bruce was immensely proud, and it showed. He beamed at her as Tony started his toast. Bucky smiled down at her as well, loving how her cheeks bloomed when she blushed.

                “I have something for you,” he murmured while everyone was chatting around the table.

                “You do?” she smiled, “You didn’t have to do that, those gorgeous flowers were more than enough.”

                “I know, but you have worked so hard so far, and you deserve everything,” he started, “I just wanted to get you something useful.” He handed her a black box and smiled.

                Liv opened it and looked up at him grinning.

                “Bucky, it’s perfect!” she pulled the watch out and looked it over, the diamonds on the watch face glittering in the light, “It’s beautiful.”

                “Here, look,” he said, flipping it over. On the back was a simple engraving;

_My Olivia,_

_You are the brightest star_

_in my dark night sky._

_I love you,_

_Your Bucky_

She gasped and pulled him closer for a kiss. He helped fix the band on her wrist and kissed her hand, smiling.

                “I’m so proud of you, my певунья,” he told her as she leaned in to his arm, “So proud.”

 

                Eventually the whole group ended up back at Stark tower since Pepper deemed it too much a security risk for them to go bar hopping. So, back to the bar in the tower it was. It was a nice, relaxing night the highlight of which was Liv and Nat teaching Thor & Wanda how to play beer pong.

                Later, when everyone was trickling off to bed or their own places, Bucky and Liv slipped away to go back to her apartment. She left a trail of clothes from the door to her bed, too tired to undress like a normal person. By the time Bucky was crawling in to bed Liv was in nothing but the black boy shorts she had worn under her dress that night. He slid in next to her and draped an arm over her hip, giving her a quick kiss on her temple before closing his eyes.

                “Bucky?” He snapped his eyes open.

                “What’s wrong?”

                “Nothing, sugar. I want…I just…,” she whispered.

                “What is it sweetheart,” he rolled so he was on his side facing her. She was looking up at him with her sleepy eyes, and he melted.

                “I don’t like it when we’re apart, even if it’s just for a night. I want you to stay,” she stammered.

                “I’m here, I’m staying,” he assured her, rubbing little circles in her back.

                “No, that’s not what I mean,” she buried her face in his chest, “I want you here with me all the time. Things will change for me, being at Metro-General a few days a week. I won’t be here all the time. I’m nervous about that and I don’t know. This isn’t coming out right.” She sighed.

                “I love you. You make me feel like I belong somewhere again, like I’m home. I’m safe with you,” she began again, “I don’t want to come home from working at the hospital and not have you here because I got in at 11pm and you’re already up in your place. I guess…. Bucky do you want to move in with me?” she blurted out.

                He laughed. It was the solution he was looking for but hadn’t thought of. Bucky crooked a finger under her chin and lifted her face to him, kissing her slowly.

                “Of course, I want to, doll,” he smiled. She grinned and threw her arms around his neck kissing him back.

                “I was afraid you’d say no because you like your own space or something,” she confessed.

                “Liv, I don’t need my own space like that. I want to wake up next to you every morning. I want to feel you crawl in to bed after a late shift at the hospital so I can wrap you up and keep you safe and warm. I want to hear you singing in the shower and make you breakfast. You’ve made my life so much brighter, like a ball of sunlight. I want to hear about how your day went, and I want to tell you about mine. I love you Olivia,” he kissed her nose gently, “besides I’m here more than I’m at my own place.”

                She laughed and curled up against him, head in the crook of his neck.

                “Good night my Bucky,” she whispered into his skin.

                “Goodnight my Liv,” he murmured against her hair.

 

 

                                                                                **18 MONTHS LATER**

 

                Liv walked into the breakroom at Metro General Hospital, looking for her mentor. Dr. Christine Palmer had been unofficially teaching Liv for the past year, training her as a triage nurse. Liv was perpetually exhausted, but Dr. Palmer was pleased with her progress. Liv had turned out to be a natural with some of the stitches she learned and kept calm beautifully in high pressure situations. Dr. Palmer had even tried to convince her to further her medical education, but Liv was happy with where she was and where she was going. Liv had finished her requirements set out by Tony with NYU’s approval and today was her last day. She wanted to make sure she said goodbye to Dr. Palmer before heading home to the tower.

                “Hey Bill, have you seen Palmer?” Liv turned the corner into the breakroom and saw another attending at a table.

                “Yeah, she was headed to theater 3, you might catch her if you cut through the ER,” he replied with a mouthful of ham sandwich.

                Liv nodded and gave him a quick wave as she turned to jog through the ER. She had started out at Metro General 3 days a week but for the last few months she had been there 4 or 5 days, some weeks, on top of combat medic training with Maria at the tower. Liv was exhausted but she had a purpose. The training had come in especially handy after a few missions went awry, and Maria had needed her help again but nothing as bad as the time she thought she was going to lose Bucky. She’d had to put in a few stitches and fish out a bullet or two over the past year, but the work she’d done lately in the ER with Dr. Palmer’s supervision was eye-opening. Liv was damn proud of what she’d accomplished in a year, even if it was completely unorthodox. She’d spent more than one night staying up in to the wee hours of the morning with Bucky, telling him everything she’d seen in the ER that day. Mainly because he was one of the only people not completely weirded out by what she was telling him. Liv had no idea that he barely listened half the time because he was so mesmerized by her face. She practically lit up when telling him all the things she’d been able to learn, and he loved how animated she got.

                She turned a corner and spotted a familiar blonde ponytail a few yards away.

                “Dr. Palmer!” Liv picked up her pace, “Hold on!”

                Christine Palmer turned and glanced back at her, face breaking into a light smile seeing Liv.

                “Well, look at you. Shouldn’t you be out of here by now?” she said hugging her intern, “Aren’t you a free woman now?”

                “Yes,” Liv rolled her eyes and smiled, “but I didn’t know when I’d see you again, so I wanted to come say goodbye, and thank you. Everything you’ve taught me over the last year and a half, it means so much that you accepted this in the first place.”

                “You were fun to work with, honestly. And if Stephen recommended you then he must have put a lot of faith in your abilities. I don’t know how well you know him, but that’s saying something,” she smiled at Liv again, “You’ll do well, wherever you go. Speaking of, do you know what your next step is after this?”

                Liv shook her head, “No, not yet. I apparently have a meeting with Tony in a little while so maybe that’ll have an answer for me.”

                “Well, good luck,” Christine said as the pair embraced again. Liv turned and walked away, giving her a small wave as she stepped through the doors.

                An hour later, still in her scrubs, Liv was walking into Tony’s lab, since FRIDAY had said he was in there instead of his office.

                “Tony?” Liv poked her head in, “Are you here?”

                “Yes!” came a voice from behind a hunk of metal, “Back here, follow the light my child.”

                Liv shook her head and started in to the lab, following an actual red line Tony was projecting on to the floor. She rolled her eyes.

                “Where are you,” Liv called. There were parts everywhere and she still hadn’t found Tony.

                “Right here,” Tony said, popping up from behind a particularly large fragment of a metal. Liv jumped.

                “Calm down, Stitches, it’s just me. I’m glad you came down, I have news,” Tony walked past her to a table and grabbed a random instrument and went back to the metal, “I’ve already told Wanda so please don’t tell me she’s already told you.”

                “She’s back?!” Liv was excited. For most of the same time she’d been at Metro General, Wanda had been in Wakanda with T’Challa, studying international diplomacy. Liv had known she was due back soon, but Wanda hadn’t told her she was back already.

                “Yeah kid, she landed earlier today,” he smirked, “Finally, I know something the rest of you don’t.”

                Liv raised an eyebrow at him and sat down on the stool by his table.

                “Anyway, I’ve got news. You’re walking the stage at NYU for graduation this weekend.”

Liv’s jaw hit the floor. She was going to have an actual graduation ceremony? She was going to get a cap and gown and an actual diploma to hang somewhere in a semi-expensive frame?

                “Tony. Are you serious?”

                “As the grave, kid. You and Wanda. And don’t trip because we’ll all be there to watch.”

                “Wait, EVERYONE?”

                “Obviously. Clearly I’m going, and Pepper. Bruce will want to be there for you both. I think we both know we can’t get away with keeping your Winter Soldier from the ceremony, and his star-spangled shadow will want to go, which means birdboy will be there. Clint is going to want to see Wanda, and Nat will want to go with him. Thor says he’ll show up. All of us.”

                “This is a little short notice, isn’t it?” Liv asked

                “A bit, but we’re all free and I’m footing the bill. Plus, family should be there when you graduate from college,” he said quietly, half to himself. Liv looked at the ground and took a deep breath.

                “Well…. fuck,” she whispered, “I’m going to head up stairs and panic now.”

                “Ok, great,” Tony replied, already completely focused on his machine again. Liv walked out the doors and headed up the stairs.

                She still had a stunned look on her face when she walked in to the common room and was almost knocked over by a hug from a red streak.

                “Liv!!” Wanda crushed her with a hug, “I’ve missed you! You look so good in scrubs, how was it? Vis says he heard Maria talking about your talent for stitches, is Tony still calling you that?”

                “WANDA!!!” Liv was tearing up, “I am so glad to see you! Girl, look at you, is that a pantsuit? I love it!”

                Vision stood off to the side, confused at the two women talking at the same time and yet understanding each other perfectly.

                The pair settled on the couch and continued talking until the rest of the team filtered in to get ready for dinner.

                “Wanda!” Steve smiled as he and Bucky walked in behind Clint, “Welcome back!” he said to her as Bucky leaned over the back of the couch to give Liv a kiss.

                “Hey,” he murmured.

                “Hey yourself,” she smiled into his kiss.

Within minutes the team was settled around the table, passing plates of food around and catching each other up about the day. Wanda told the team about a few meetings she sat in on, and Liv discussed setting up a veteran’s liaison at Metro General with Sam through the VA. Steve and Bucky talked with Nat about an upcoming mission, with Clint occasionally jumping in with his thoughts. Liv and Wanda spent most of the dinner catching up when they weren’t talking to other people.

The conversations carried over to after dinner, moving to the couches. It was a particularly uneventful night, but it gave everyone a chance to catch up a bit. Tony even remembered to tell Liv & Wanda about getting measured for a cap & gown the next morning, as they only had 2 days until the ceremony.

“Wait, you go the approval?” Nat asked him

“Approval for what?” Bucky looked at Liv.

“I was going to tell you tonight, I promise,” she nervously smiled at him, “Wanda and I are walked the stage at NYU for graduation.”

“I call dibs on a ticket!” Clint yelled instantly, smiling at Wanda.

“Seconded!” called Sam from the kitchen.

“Hold on, HOLD ON,” Tony yelled over the rest of the group, “We’re all going! Everyone who wants to, gets to see our little graduates saunter across the stage from a special area. Don’t worry, Bucko, nobody is going to notice you’re there.”

There was a general clamor of approval form the team as Liv and Wanda smiled at each other. Neither one of them had ever expected to be surrounded by this much warmth and support but here they were. They both had families again, and they’ve gone places in their lives that neither one expected, and on top of that they had found a kindred spirit in each other. It was an unspoken bond between the pair, that there was no one else they would have traveled this journey with.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I woke up this morning to over 800 hits and like 40-something kudos. I won't lie to y'all, I cried just a little. I didn't think anybody would read my little story, which was fine but this is something else. Thank you all, so much.


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is the fluffiest fluff to ever fluff.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Seriously, it's gonna get so cute & sweet in this chapter y'all are gonna get cavities.

2 days later they were yet again grateful they were in this together as they nervously stood off stage in Yankee Stadium, waiting to be announced. Tony had neglected to mention that although they were walking the stage, they wouldn’t be integrated in with the rest of the students. They were placed at the end, after the announcement that they were the recipients of a special scholarship from Stark’s foundation. The upside is that they were together during the wait. The downside being all eyes were on them, which made Wanda very apprehensive. There were still people who blamed her for the incident in Lagos, regardless of whatever political voodoo Tony had worked in her favor and exposing herself, having her name announced in front of that many people…. she was nervous, to say the least.

Liv took her hand again and gave it a gentle squeeze once more. They stood and listened to the Dean of NYU drone on about how this had brought prestige and a touch of the modern era to their esteemed school and how lucky they were to have been granted this opportunity.

“I’m sure this has nothing to do with the insane amount of money Tony donated,” Liv whispered. Wanda snorted in agreement.

“…So. Now for our two graduates. Miss Wanda Maximoff and Miss Olivia McBride!”

The girls started up the stairs at the sound of Wanda’s name, nervously smiling at each other and heading to the Dean, ready to accept their diplomas. Wanda’s smile grew larger as she heard a few loud ‘YEAH KID’ from what could only be Clint’s mouth on top of the applause from their family once she grasped her diploma and shook the Dean’s hand. Immediately after, Liv had to stifle a laugh as she was graced with incredibly loud whistles and a ‘GET ‘EM CUPCAKE’ from her favorite boys when she strode across the stage. Bucky could see the faint tilt to her smile, he knew this was bittersweet for her. She was so proud of herself (which she’d never say out loud) and she was so incredibly happy they were there, but he knew it was missing something for her. It didn’t matter how many times she smiled over at them, he knew she was wishing her family was there as well. The little ball of guilt wound up in the pit of his stomach, just like it did every time he knew she missed her family.

“Buck, you ok?” Steve murmured at his side, still clapping for Wanda & Liv.

“Yeah,” he answered, “I’m good.” He was gruff but trying not to be rude. Steve saw right through it.

“I know, Buck. She misses them,” Steve clapped a hand across his back, “She say anything about it?”

“No, and she probably won’t. You know how she is.”

Steve nodded and watched as the girls switched the tassels on their caps to the other side. Their little group got even louder with the clapping and cheering. Surprisingly, Thor stayed at a normal person level.

 

Liv was making her way though the crowd with Wanda in tow looking for the team. They had finished the ceremony and stopped to say a few words to the Dean but then tried to make their way through the heavy throng of people to find, well…their people.

“You know, we should just look for a crowd with a bunch of people taking pictures.” Wanda stood on tiptoe, trying to look over everyone.

“That’s actually not a bad-Found them!” Liv pointed over to a small crowd of co-eds taking selfies with Cap, Tony, and Thor. The girls started making their way over to the crowd, smiling at how uncomfortable Steve looked.  Nat and Clint were over to the side, laughing to each other about the whole situation while Sam was holding Finn’s leash next to Pepper and Bruce, slightly removed from the group. Liv looked around, frowning. Bucky wasn’t with the rest of them.

“Hey, there’s my favorite girls,” Sam embraced Wanda and then Liv, “y’all looked great up there. All collegiate and everything.”

“Thanks Sam,” Wanda smiled.

“We seem to be short a team member,” Liv muttered into his shoulder.

“Yeah, too many people here now, too close. Tony tried to send him home, but I’m pretty sure he’s lurking somewhere in the shadows like a damn vampire.”

Liv smiled. It would’ve been nice to get a real group picture here, but they could always do it on the roof at the Tower or something. Speaking of,

“Sam, picture time!” she declared, holding up her phone. After a selfie with Sam and one with Finn, and then one with Wanda, Pepper offered to get a few group shots in. As much as she loved the one of (almost) everyone, her favorite was the picture of her and Wanda with Thor. Liv and Wanda had grabbed a quick seat on a bench while a few more girls tried to get a picture with Cap while Thor had conspired with Sam to get a quick shot in. He ran up behind them and picked up the bench, holding it over his head with one hand & giving thumbs up while Wanda & Liv did the girlish scream-laugh. She was pretty sure it was going to be in the NYU catalogue next year, given the number of pictures taken at that minute. Liv also had Pepper take a nice shot of her and Cap to give to Bucky. He’d like a picture of his two favorite people in the world smiling at him. There was a great shot of Wanda & Liv on either side of Tony that she was sure Pepper was going to have framed. Nat wanted a girl’s shot, so Tony took a few of Liv, Wanda, Pepper and Nat smiling, and then a few candid ones. Clint and Nat posed with Wanda, smiling happily at her adopted family. Liv even convinced Bruce to take a few pictures with her and a few with Wanda.

Over to the side of the action, hidden behind some equipment Bucky watched the girl of his dreams laugh and smile for a dozen pictures. He wanted nothing more than to be there with her, but the timing wasn’t right for him yet. As much as it pained him to miss out on it, he knew it was safer this way. He had to smile to himself though every time he caught her trying to look for him without anyone noticing. He loved that woman and she was so brilliant, but she’d made the worst spy in the world. He could see that Natasha caught it as well and whispered to Clint. They both nodded to him from where they were standing. He could see Steve trying to round up the group and herd them towards the parking lot, so they could leave. Ever the mother hen. He was grateful though, Steve knew he was impatient to see Liv, on top of the small surprise reception Tony had planned for the girls back at the Tower. He slipped away to get back to his motorcycle he stashed when everyone had parked their cars.

Poor Steve. Trying to get Tony and Thor to stop taking pictures with fans was like trying to herd cats. In a tornado. Fortunately, Pepper stepped in to rope Tony up and Liv convinced Thor to head back so she could see Bucky. 30 minutes later, they were piling in to cars while Steve got on his bike.

“See you back at the Tower?” he yelled over the engine before speeding off.

Nat rolled her eyes. Boys never change. She nodded to Liv and Wanda and the girls took off, blasting AC/DC through the open windows. It really was a beautiful day.

 

“Ok, well let me stop at my place and throw the cap & gown in there then,” Liv started after Nat told her to head up to their floors once they got to the parking garage beneath the tower.

“No, just head up! You looked cute in it,” Nat started, “besides, Barnes didn’t get to see you in it and you don’t want Wanda to have to walk in all by herself like that do you?”

Liv rolled her eyes at Wanda’s poor imitation of a puppy face and smiled.

“Ugh, Fine. I’ll wear it up but I’m not wearing it all night! Honestly, I just want to get out of this dress more,” she lifted up a hem pointing to the pale lavender fitted sheath dress she wore under her graduation robes.

“Really? I thought it was really cute!” Wanda said, being the only one that had seen her in it before the ceremony. Wanda herself had put on a pale pink chiffon dress under her robes.

“You both look adorable; can we just get upstairs now?” Nat looked pointedly at them as she pressed the floor button for where they were headed. Liv turned her diploma over in her hands while the elevator took them up. She had received a certificate from Maria Hill last month saying that she was now certified as a non-combatant combat medic and she honestly wasn’t sure which piece of paper she was prouder of. She had worked equally hard for both and they were both important to her. She was pulled out of her thoughts as the elevator softly jerked to a stop on the Avenger’s floor. Nat stepped out of the way for the other two to leave and followed. She regretted this decision a bit as she couldn’t see their faces as they walked around the corner to the common area.

“SURPRISE!”

Liv and Wanda laughed in surprise as they looked on to find everyone standing around a huge table full of food and an enormous cake. There was even a very cheesy looking ‘Congratulations’ banner hung over the windows. Everyone that had come to the graduation ceremony was there, including a few others. Wanda was thrilled to see that T’Challa was there, along with his sister Shuri, and Liv beamed at the sight of Dr. Palmer next to Bruce, with Doctor Strange nearby. They were even surprised to see Nick Fury standing next to Maria Hill. Bucky, however, was front and center, smiling at his Liv.

“Congratulations, певунья,” he whispered to her as he pulled her in for an embrace. She smiled up at him as the team mulled around them, chatting and murmuring congratulations to the girls.

“I see why Nat wanted me to keep the cap & gown on,” she smirked, pulling away for a second. 

“I saw you on stage, I was there. I missed pictures though, I’m sorry.”

                “Nope, got you covered!” Nat said as she took a few more pictures of the couple. She even waved Steve over to get in and Sam joined them.

                “Oh, I’m framing this one,” Liv laughed after Nat showed her the picture of the 4 of them, “It’s me and my boys!”

Steve just wrapped an arm over her shoulder and pulled her in for a one-armed hug.

                “You did good, kid,” giving her a peck on the top of her head, “we’re proud.”

Liv beamed and glanced over to Bucky who was watching the exchange with a thoughtful look on his face. Liv couldn’t see it right away, but there was something about watching his oldest friend in the world treat his best girl like a kid sister that made feel like his world full of puzzle pieces slide together just a little bit more. Especially when she smiled over at him the way she just did. Liv gave Steve a little squeeze and slipped away while he was distracted talking to Sam and she headed over to Bucky.

                “How long did he have this planned?” motioning over to Tony.

                “For a while now, it was torture not telling you,” he grinned.

                “Bullshit,” she smacked his stomach softly, “you loved it.”

                He just grinned in return.

It turned out to be one of the most relaxing parties Tony had ever thrown. FRIDAY was playing decent music softly over the monitors and the food was great. Liv even managed to see Dr. Palmer for a bit, as she had to leave early (overnight shift at the hospital). She was walking back from the elevators after she said goodbye when Tony caught up to her.

                “Hey kid,” as he threw an arm around her, “how’s the day been?”  
                “Tony, this has been one of the best days I’ve had in a long time,” she smiled at him.

                “Good to hear. Listen,” he said as he steered her away from the common area and back to the elevator, “Pepper and I need to steal you for a minute. I’ll bring you right back, cross my little metal heart.”

                “O….k,” she answered as she saw Pepper already holding an elevator for them.

                “Hello Liv,” Pepper smiled, “This will either be incredibly quick or slightly longer than that, depending on your answer.”

                “Answer to what…” she looked from Pepper to Tony and back again.

                Pepper pinched the bridge of her nose.

                “You didn’t tell her AT ALL?” she glared at him.

                He shrugged and smiled at them as the doors closed.

 

Bucky had been looking around for Liv for the last 10 minutes or so until he ran in to Natasha.

                “Lose something, Barnes?” she asked over her glass of wine.

                “In a way. Can’t find Liv anywhere,” he replied, scanning the group once more. She wasn’t over with Shuri and Bruce, who were having an animated conversation using words Bucky could only assume were completely made up and he didn’t see her near Steve and Sam, who were retelling some story to Strange and T’Challa.

                “Stark has her, upstairs. Pepper too,” she answered him.

                “oh…. OH,” he whirled on her, “Is that how he planned on telling her?”

                “No idea,” she shrugged, “but you’ll know in about 3 minutes. They’re coming back in now.”

Bucky whipped back around to look for Liv, who was walking next to Pepper with a huge smile on her face. She glanced over at him and winked, and he felt that familiar tightening in his chest again.

                “Attention people in my house who are drinking my booze!” Tony began (“Tony,” said an exasperated Pepper) “I need your attention. Since we’re all here, I’d like you to meet someone. They’re going to be a permanent member of the Avengers family as of- “he checked his watch, “-6 minutes ago. Kids, please say hi to Olivia McBride, the new head of day-to-day Med lab duties and our personal combat medic.”

                Liv smiled as she heard an “About time!” from Sam and a “Thank god, somebody competent!” from Nat. She looked over to Bucky, who was beaming with pride. She started toward him but was cut off by Steve, who appeared in front of her like a house.

                “So, when do you start?” he smiled.

                “Monday, actually. I’ll train with Dr. Cho, since she’s been handling the day to day of it recently. I’m sure she’ll be glad to get back to her research now,” Liv grinned, “Looks like you guys didn’t get rid of me yet.”

                “I don’t that was ever the plan, especially with you-know-how around,” he said while nodding his head over his left shoulder where Bucky still stood. Liv giggled.

                “Oh yeah? What was his brilliant plan, convince FRIDAY to lock me in my apartment?”

                “Not exactly. He had something else in mind, but I’d bet he wouldn’t have rejected that idea,” Steve laughed, “I don’t think he had any thoughts other than ‘she can’t leave’ for a while there, which is a direct quote you did not hear from me. He was a little panicked that you’d up and take a job somewhere else in the country, much less the city.”

                Liv blushed and glanced over to Bucky.

                “I never wanted to leave, believe me,” she answered softly.

                “We know. We didn’t want you to either. You’re part of the team now, even better that it’s officially. Natasha’s been training you with weapons, right?”

                “A bit, it’s been a while since I’ve been at the hospital, but it was a little. Plus, a little hand-to-hand. Why?”

                “If you’re going to be a team medic and come on the occasional mission we need to get you weapons certified. Don’t worry,” he reassured Liv one he saw her blanche, “you wouldn’t even leave the jet unless it’s an emergency but just in case. It’s better to be prepared, right?”

                “Now that you put it that way,” she considered, “I wouldn’t want to be a damsel in distress or anything.”

                Steve laughed at that. “We wouldn’t want you to be one either. I’ll talk to Nat about getting in more training for you.”

                She murmured a thank you to him as he walked away, leaving her in front of her handsome boyfriend. He made it over to her in 2 steps and swept her up in his arms so fiercely her breath caught in her throat.

                “Hello beautiful,” he whispered into her neck.

                “Hello handsome,” she smiled back, “How’d I do today? Not bad for a college girl, right?”

                “You were perfect. Everyone loves you and they’re all happy you decided to stay,” he smiled down on the face he couldn’t wait to wake up next to tomorrow. Liv was so absorbed in Bucky’s eyes that she didn’t see Steve elbow Natasha next to them and Tony smack Sam in the arm to get him to shut up. Bucky gave Liv a deep kiss and took a small step back.

                “In fact, nobody wanted you to stay more than I did, and the thought of you leaving was breaking my heart. Which, by the way, is something I thought would never happen to me again. I figured I’d keep going on missions with Steve and the rest of the team until my body wore out or I was killed. I had a lot I needed to redeem myself for. And I never guessed on falling for a long-legged secretary who hid a hell of a brain under that gorgeous dark hair. But there you were, breezing into my life with that dog of yours and I realized I would never want it any other way ever again. You make my days brighter, hell, you make this whole place brighter. I love you, Olivia McBride. I have no idea what I did to deserve you, but I want to spend the rest of my life trying to be worthy of it. I guess what I’m trying to say is”- he pulled a small black box from his pocket and knelt on one knee in front of her while Liv gasped, “Liv, do you think you can stick around here a little longer? Marry me, певунья, please?” Bucky smiled up at her sheepishly, opening the little black box.

                Liv’s hands flew to her mouth as soon as he had started to kneel. She was stunned but that didn’t stop the smile from curling up the sides of her mouth as Bucky spoke. She had to physically stop herself from leaping at him and wait for him to finish but the tears on her lashes were blurring everything. His words, oh my god. This beautiful man had just said those beautiful things to her and the next thing she knew she was smiling and crying and nodding at the same time, falling into his arms.

                “So, is that a yes or what?” yelled Sam from behind them.

                “It’s a yes!” she yelled, throwing her left hand in to the air to show him her ring finger. They had never heard so much cheering and yelling from the team. Wanda had practically shoved her fist in her mouth to keep from making noise while he proposed, and Vision watched her with a perplexed look on his face. Thor clapped Bucky on the back and picked Liv up for a bear hug. Steve looked a tad misty-eyed and Sam was yelling. Clint had whistled and exclaimed how it took Bucky forever to even ask her out, they all guessed it’d be another year before this happened. Nat pulled Liv in to a tight hug followed by a hug to Bucky where she whispered, very gently in Russian to him, that if he ever hurt Liv, she’d mutilate his body so that even HYDRA couldn’t put him back together again.

                “I’d expect nothing less,” he whispered back.

Liv had to talk Tony down from planning the wedding almost immediately and she had to call in her reinforcements in the shape of Rhodey & Pepper. Nick Fury shook Bucky’s hand and Maria followed, giving him a look that had the same message Nat had already given to him.

                Wanda pulled Liv to the side quickly, giving her a huge hug.

                “I’m so happy for you two! Ok, let’s see the ring,” she giggled, holding Liv’s hand out. Bucky had done well. It was a beautiful art deco style round diamond, surrounded by smaller diamonds. The band had stunning filigree work on it.

                “He did very well,” Wanda mused.

                “I’ll have to agree with you there,” Nat stated, walking up to peek over Liv’s shoulder, “Think Steve helped him?”

                “Who knows,” Liv muttered, still amazed at what had just happened. She looked up at Bucky and smiled, watching him laugh with Steve. He glanced over to her and winked, making her heart flutter just a bit. Liv blew him a kiss and smiled.

                “So, this is what starting over feels like,” she whispered to herself.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry, we're almost at the end now!


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's another mini time jump in the beginning, but it's addressed right away so it shouldn't be confusing.

“OK, Claire, you’ve got the rest of the paperwork for the day and you’re all set for tomorrow?” Liv asked, throwing more supplies into her med bag and walking over to another supply cabinet for more.

                “Yeah, Liv, I’ve got this,” Claire smirked, “I think I can handle a couple days of routine paperwork. It’s not like this is the first time you’ve gone on a mission. Honestly, I’m just happy I get Finn to myself for a bit.”

                Liv rolled her eyes. Of course, it wasn’t her first mission. In fact, she had gone on more than her fair share in the almost 8 months since she started full time at the Tower. None more than a day though, which is why this one was different. She was going to be gone for almost 3 days this time. She really hoped that the nausea she’s been feeling since she woke up was only nerves. She really had no need to catch the stomach bug going around the lower floors.

                “I know you’ve got it Claire, that was more for me than for you,” Liv smiled sheepishly, “And I know you’ve got Dr. Cho downstairs and Dr. Palmer’s number is on the wall. This is just a longer one than usual and I don’t feel well.”

                “Nerves about the mission or that thing what’s-his-name in accounting had the other day?” Claire asked her with a face full of concern.

                “I’m hoping it’s the former, but it feels like the latter,” Liv groaned.

 

Once she was settled on the Quinjet with the team, her stomach slightly settled but not by a whole lot. At least she could lean her head back and listen to music for a bit while Bucky and Steve discussed strategy with Nat towards the front.

                “Feeling alright?” Bruce asked her, gently laying a hand on her arm.

                “What? Oh, yeah. I think so,” she smiled at the quiet man next to her, “One of the guys in accounting brought a stomach bug up the other day and I’m hoping I didn’t get it.”

                “Hold on, I think I can actually help with this,” he smiled, stepping out of his seat. Moments later he reappeared with a small packet of crackers and a can of ginger ale.

                “Where did this come from?” She smiled gratefully, “thank you!”

                “Every occasionally, coming down off…you know… I get a bit woozy,” he shrugged, “this helps.”

                Liv smiled at Bruce while she nibbled on a cracker. The hiss from opening the can caught Bucky’s attention, who gave her an inquisitive look, but he stayed up front with Steve & Nat. Bruce and Liv talked quietly until the plane got closer to their destination and Steve’s captain voice took over.

                “Alright folks, this should be an average mission, just eliminate and retrieve information, no extraction. Tony, Sam, Vision, you’re on air support, Wanda, you’re with Nat. Clint & Bucky, you know where you need to be. I’ll go in with Thor and Bruce, you stay here with Liv as backup. Comms check, everyone. Rogers.”

                The team sounded off, one by one. Liv could hear everyone’s surnames clearly in her ear as she checked her med bag for the 6th time and went over the supplies in the jet’s sick bay once again.

                “OOhhh, one more month and then it’ll be double the Barnes checking in over comms,” teased Tony.

                “So, should I have said ‘Almost Barnes’ this time?” Liv quipped back. Bucky smiled to himself as he fitted another knife it the slot by his boot. He couldn’t wait to hear her say his last name over the comms, if he was being perfectly honest.

                “Cap, we’re 6 minutes out,” Clint said from the front of the plane where he was piloting.

                “Alright people, let’s get ready. We know our jobs, this is an easy one,” Cap assured the team.

Bucky came over to sit with Liv while she went over her checklist again, resting a hand on her bobbing knee.

                “Hey, певунья, it'll be fine. This isn't a big one. What’s going on?”

                “I’m not even sure,” she answered, leaning her head on his shoulder, “I just feel…. off.”

                “Did you get any rest, we’ve been in the air a while,” he murmured, wrapping an arm over her shoulder.

                “A bit. Not much though. I’ll be ok, Buck. Bruce will be here, you’re just doing your job that is incredibly dangerous and in no way scares the fuck out of me. It’ll be fine,” she gives him a wry smile.

                He kisses her hair and smiles. He never thought he’d meet a woman that gave him as much shit for stuff like Steve does, but here she is. He sat with her for a minute, memorizing the way she felt in his arms.

                “You’re all set with everything? Your med bag good to go?” he asked, “What about your gun?”

                “Sugar, I’m all set. Stop with the mother hen routine, that’s Steve’s job,” she smiled.

They landed just outside of the base location, with Steve and everyone filing out and heading to their posts. A quick wink and a kiss from Bucky was all Liv was able to get before he too was out of the jet. Liv unbuckled from her harness and stretched, standing next to Bruce at the back of the plane, watching them as they disappeared into the forest.

She was grateful she could still hear them over the comms, unlike her first mission with the team. Fury had decided she didn’t rate a security clearance, so she was deaf to what was happening in the field, for all intents and purposes. It was the first and last time it ever happened, because on that mission, Natasha ended up getting a deep cut along her lower abdomen and was bleeding heavily. Because they had to rely on Bruce relaying information to Liv via his comm, it almost took too long for Liv to get to Nat in the field. Steve called a meeting with Fury the minute they got back and raised holy hell, so every mission after that where they’ve needed Liv to come along, she was on comms with the team. In this instance things seemed to be going well, based on the banter she could hear between all of them. Steve made a remark about the low number of agents, while Tony sniped back that he was seeing plenty surrounded the base.

Just then Liv and Bruce heard something approaching them. The sun was setting and the low light was making it hard to see and they both moved away from the back of the jet slowly, getting closer to the interior.

                “Uhh…guys? Please tell me one of you is moving toward the jet?” Bruce whispered.

                “What? No, we’re all at the base perimeter. What do you hear? Stay there Bruce, Liv, do you hear me? I’m on my way,” Bucky ordered.

                “No Buck, continue on mission!” Steve yelled, “Vision, circle back around to the jet. Help is on the way guys.”

                “Steve, there’s not enough time,” Liv whispered, “I don’t think there’s very many, maybe two or three. They’re close though.”

                “I am on my way,” Vision confirmed

                “Bruce, get behind me,” Liv whispered.

                “Liv! Don’t-“ Bucky started but was interrupted by gunfire from her comm.

BANG! BANGBANG! BANG!

                There was silence on Bruce & Liv’s end of the comms. Bucky could feel his heart beating through is chest. He was deep in the base by then and it was taking every ounce of effort he had not to make a sound as he stalked through the compound.

                “I have them, Captain,” Vision’s voice crackled over the earpiece, “Olivia dispatched 3 of the Hydra agents attempting to infiltrate the quinjet. Dr. Banner has not ‘gone green’ as it were, Olivia is not injured. I have taken care of the other 2 agents.”

                “She’s ok, she’s just a little shaken,” Bruce reassured them.

Bucky could feel the tension in his shoulders ease ever so slightly. She was ok but that was too close. How had none of them detected agents that close to the jet? On top of that Liv had to take a life and not just one, 3 of them. She wanted to heal people and he put her in a position where she had to kill someone. Why didn’t she just let Bruce handle it? He took a deep breath and forced himself to focus. The sooner they got the intel they were looking for, the sooner he could get back to Liv. He looked up, seeing Wanda enter the doorway across from him, Natasha behind her. Nat nodded to him and moved to the side, staying against the wall.

                “Second floor clear,” she informed Steve.

                “First floor done, Nat you get the files you needed?”

                “Files are good, about to download info now. Why, you boys getting bored down there?” she smirked.

                Minutes later they were all headed back tot the jet, Steve catching up with Bucky as he sprinted over.

                “She’s ok Buck, you heard Bruce,” Steve reassured him.

                “Yeah Steve, she’s fine. But she had to shoot someone,” Bucky grunted.

Steve nodded, understanding. Liv was the bright light on the team and thinking about anything taking that light from her was upsetting to say the least.

                They stepped on to the jet and saw Liv, sitting in her seat where Bucky had left her, staring straight ahead in to space, clutching her med bag with white knuckles.

                “Liv? Honey?” Bucky murmured gently, “We’re back now.”

                “What? Hey sugar,” he noticed how she jumped the slightest bit, seeing him next to her, “everyone ok? Nobody hurt?”

                “Yeah, Livvie, we’re good,” said Sam as he walked in. He and Bucky exchanged a look. She was far too calm for somebody who wasn’t used to this sort of thing. Right then, Nat walked in and walked right over to Liv, sitting on the other side of her.

                “Hey, Liv. You did good, ok? You did what you needed to do,” she crooned to her, “It’s ok now. I need you to let go of your bag before you hurt your hands.” Nat gently pried the bag off Liv’s lap and rubbed her arm. Liv just turned and looked at her, blankly.

                “I didn’t even think about it. They were there, and we were here…” her voice cracked, and she trailed off.

Bruce caught Bucky’s eye and they moved to the front of the plane to speak to Steve.

                “She said she didn’t want me to have to get the Big Guy out if I didn’t have to,” Bruce confided in them, “She was worried about me. I’m so sorry, Bucky, I should’ve done something, but they came out of the trees so fast and Liv was so quick.”

                “No, Bruce. It’s ok,” Bucky answered softly. She didn’t want Bruce to go green? She was so concerned with his wellbeing that she killed 3 agents? Of course she did, because damn near every thought she had was about the well-being of all of them, no regard for herself.

                “Guys, who’s been training her,” Clint said, walking up behind Bruce.

                “Nat and I, why?” answered Bucky.

                “How many shots did you hear, 4? There were 3 agents. She hit every one of them center mass, these idiots weren’t wearing Kevlar at all. One was a headshot. I’m impressed.”

                The four of them looked over to Liv and watched as she looked over a small cut Wanda had gotten on her leg running back to the jet. Liv looked better with something else to focus on, but Bucky was still pretty shaken. She wasn’t supposed to ever have to do this sort of thing. He sighed.

                “Natasha, please tell me that the information you got was at least worth this?” he called to her.

                “I think it was, Barnes,” she answered, walking over, “I think it might even give us one or two more base locations.”

                He nodded. At least there was a little bit of a silver lining to this. He looked over to his fiancée and caught the small smile she gave him. He’d wanted to talk to her about what had happened, but she fell asleep leaning on his shoulder as soon as the jet was up in the air.

 

                Later, after they had gotten back to the tower in the wee hours of the morning, Bucky woke with a start. He leaned back slowly and ran his fingertips over the sheets next to him, reaching for Liv but her side of the bed was empty. Then he heard it. She was in the bathroom, retching and Finn was scratching at the door, whining.

                “Liv? What’s wrong, are you ok?” he went to open the door to get to her, but she had locked it, “it’s ok buddy, she’s ok,” he murmured to Finn.  

                “I’m fine, sugar,” she answered meekly, “please go back to bed.”

She rested her head against the cool porcelain of the bathtub, willing the nausea to go away. She had  hoped she would be able to get back in bed without him noticing she was gone but, Bucky was Bucky.

                “Liv, come on, let me in babe,” he pleaded against the door, “please?”

She groaned. And dragged herself to the door after flushing everything she had eaten earlier that day. Bucky heard the soft click of the lock and slowly opened the door, peeking in on her.

                “Hey,” he crooned to her, crouching down to push her hair back from her forehead.

                “Hey yourself,” she muttered. Liv leaned beck on the bathtub again, letting out a slow breath. Finn scooted in to the bathroom between Bucky’s legs and immediately went to Liv’s side. She was pretty sure she was going to be ok to lay down, so she tried to stand up but just felt horrible. Before she knew it, Bucky had scooped her up in his arms and was walking them both back into the bedroom. She wrapped her arms around his neck and clung to him, resting her head on his shoulder. Bucky sighed and gripped her a little tighter before laying her down, gently resting her head on her pillow. She opened her eyes and smiled. Finn was resting his nose on the edge of the bed, watching her. He grabbed her a bottle of water from their fridge and went to crawl back in bed but Liv’s hands on his chest stopped him.

                “nooo, Bucky you can’t get in here,” she whispered, “you’ll get sick too.”

Bucky smiled and kissed her head while moving her hands away.

                “No such luck sweetheart,” he murmured back, “Super soldiers don’t get sick.” He crawled over next to her and settled in, curling his body around hers. She didn’t have a fever, so that was lucky. Looks like it actually was that stomach bug she was so worried about. He gave her body a little squeeze and nuzzled his chin against her shoulder.

                “Bucky?”

                “I’m right here, Liv.”

                “Distract me, tell me something. Please?” she whimpered, pulling his arms tighter around her. He placed a small kiss on her shoulder and thought for a second.

                “Well,” he considered, “Nat thinks she got more intel than we had planned on, so it’ll take a few days to decrypt and sort through. It looks like we’ll have another base to head to, if her initial glances at it are correct.” He placed another kiss near her neck and smiled against her skin as she sighed softly.

                “Liv, honey,” he started carefully, feeling her tense up slightly, “Liv, I think we need to talk about what happened.” He felt her sigh against him and he helped her shift her body as she tried to roll over to face him.

                “Sugar, I’m honestly ok. I was more afraid that Bruce would go green and get distracted and then everything would go all to hell. Or he’d accidentally hurt me if he turned while still in the quinjet and then he’d feel absolutely horrible. I didn’t think about much else than that,” she shifted her weight against him so her head was nestled into the crook of his neck.

                “Liv, I know you were worried about him but that isn’t your job. I know you can do it,” he countered, seeing her raised eyebrow, “but you shouldn’t have to. You didn’t train for that, you didn’t sign up for it.”

                “Actually Buck,” she said softly, “I’ve know for a while this was something I might need to do one day.”

                “What- when did you decide this?” The anger edging into his voice. He was the killer, he was the one with rivers of blood on his hands, not her. Not his songbird.

                “Months ago, baby,” she said as she reached up to stroke his cheek, “Nat mentioned it to me. She knew something could happen one day and she wanted me to be prepared. Don’t be mad at her. I’m glad she trained me the way she did.”

                “She…she knew?” he whispered.

                “She was concerned that you wanted to protect me instead of prepare me. She was right sugar, you can’t be everywhere I am. When we’re all in the field, you can’t think of me as your future wife. I’m your medic. Having to do what I did made me realize that. I’m ok with it because Bruce was ok, he didn’t get hurt and the Hulk stayed where he was.”

                Bucky considered what she said silently, leaning in to Liv’s hand on his cheek. She was right, he realized. He’d been so concerned that she stay the farthest thing from what he was that he hadn’t even prepared her correctly. He’d assumed he’d be able to be there if she needed him, like a fool. Liv could handle anything that was thrown at her and he acted like she was a fragile china doll. He made a mental note to thank Nat tomorrow for picking up his slack. Knowing her, she didn’t want to lose Liv either so what better way than to make sure she was well prepared. He snorted, remembering how she took them agents down.

                “What, what’s funny?” she looked up at him.

                “Did you even see where you hit those guys?” he asked her.

                “No, not really. I know I hit them, but I didn’t go over to check. Vision showed up right after, so I figured if I had missed he took care of it,” she shrugged.

                “Liv, you hit them all center mass. One guy had a headshot. You impressed Clint, actually,” he told her, pride in his voice.

                “Seriously? Guess it’s a good thing Nat was such a pain in the ass during training,” she giggled. Bucky smiled down at her. She sounded much better already. Maybe they were going to get lucky and this was only a short stomach bug. In the 2 years he’s known her she’s only even been really, truly sick one other time. That was a rough flu though, it took out almost half of the team. He pulled her in to kiss her forehead.

                “Get some sleep, Dirty Harry,” he murmured into her hair, “you need it.”

                “Oh, so you’ll watch Dirty Harry movies but not Bullitt? That is some bullshit,” she mumbled against his chest, closing her eyes. The last thing she heard before sleep claimed her again was the deep rumble of a laugh in Bucky’s chest as she curled up against him.

 

 

                Liv was getting concerned. It had been two weeks and the stomach bug still hadn’t left. It seemed like it was coming and going, if she was being honest. She’d even been having a hard time taking Finn for his morning run (luckily he liked running with Bucky and Steve better). Today was so bad that she had to sequester herself in their apartment until Steve was done cooking breakfast. The smell of the eggs frying made her almost lose it right there in the kitchen. She was laying on her couch, thankful she was a few floors away, so the smell couldn’t float in under her door when her phone went off. It was from Nat.

               

_Hey, where are you?_

_Hiding in my place. I can’t shake this bug_ _☹_

_Still?! I’m calling Dr. Cho, this is ridiculous._

_Oh shut up, I’ll do it. I was hoping it was just a bug but…ugh. Can’t even smell eggs right now or blargh_

_Can you make it to the meeting- Fury wants you there. We sorted through the intel I got._

_Yeah, I’ll be there. Have the hot guy bring some fruit down for me please?_

_Sure, I’ll let Steve know._

_Oh, ha ha ha. Jackass._

_You love me  :*_

_Obviously. Or else you’d kick my ass._

_Damn straight._

Liv grinned. She hated to admit it, but Nat was right. She needed to call Dr. Cho about this. Her wedding was a week and a half away and she did not need to be taking puke breaks during her reception. She sighed and opened her contacts list, scrolling down to find the doctor’s number and hit dial. Here goes….

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter. It felt necessary to get Liv and Bucky into some action, Avengers-style.


	25. Chapter 25

“Ok, so are we all up to speed then?” Fury asked the table. He had spent the last 2 hours going over the decrypted intel that Nat had gathered and it was pretty heavy stuff. He confirmed that there was, in fact, a new Hydra base for them to get to and take out, but it wasn’t just the base they needed to be worried about. There were numerous mentions of some sort of bomb. They had ruled out dirty bomb, thankfully but that was about all they had figured out. The intel was cryptic, to say the least. Bucky was confident it wasn’t another Winter Soldier, but Fury wasn’t taking any chances. He was pulling the whole team in on this one.

                “We’re heading out in 3 days? That doesn’t feel rushed to anyone else?” Scott Lang asked from the corner of the conference room while Hope van Dyne elbowed him. When Fury said everybody, he meant everybody.

                “Really Tic-tac, you don’t think Fury’s been prepping for this since 20 minutes after we got back from the last one?” Sam raised an eyebrow at him, “Come one man, I thought you were smart.”

                “How far away is this one located again?” Liv asked. She needed to know if she was going on this damn mission a week before her wedding.

                “Not far enough that you need to go,” Fury told her, “We’ve got Strange coming in this time, so I don’t think we’ll need a second medic.” Fury still wasn’t happy that Liv went on missions with the team and he was unhappier still when he got word of what she did last time. He respected her, and her ability and that respect increased when he heard why she shot those agents, but she wasn’t trained and hardened like the rest of them and it made him nervous. She was, to him, a distraction. Especially for Barnes.

                Liv sighed. Thank god she didn’t have to worry about going out again if she was still sick.

                “You’ll be in good hands with Dr. Strange,” she told the team, “nobody is more capable. Oh, and could you all try to not get beat up too much? I just want normal wedding pictures, people. Please.” Liv smiled.

                “Livvie, trust me, if my smiling face is up in there, nobody is gonna be looking at these chumps,” Sam teased back.

                “Please. Have you seen you?” Maria Hill retorted from behind Fury.

                “Isn’t the attention supposed to be on the bride?” Hope asked, winking at Liv.

                “Yeah, that went out the window the minute I invited Thor,” Liv smirked back.

They laughed as Thor pretended to pout but the laughter died down when Fury cleared his throat.

                “We’ll have them all back in one piece before the big day. Now go get your shit together,” Fury said, before turning and walking out. Natasha leaned over to Liv while Bucky was distracted, talking to Steve & Scott.

                “Did you call her?” she whispered.

                “I did. She making time for me to stop by today-“ she checked her watch, -“in a few minutes, actually.”

                “Want me to go with?”

                “No, I’ll be good. Besides, imagine how much he’d worry if you went with me? He’d run a dent in the floors with all the pacing,” Liv giggled.

                “What’s going on?” Wanda asked

                “Nothing, I’ll tell you later,” Nat told her, seeing Bucky start to turn around. Liv winked at her and nodded to Nat.

                “Relieved you’re staying him on this one?” Steve asked Liv.

                “Yes and no. How am I supposed to make sure you all stay out of trouble?” she teased.

                “We’ll be fine, don’t worry,” Bucky assured her, “feel like taking Finn to the park in a bit?”

                “Can’t, I’ve got to see Dr. Cho about some lab stuff. It shouldn’t take long,” she replied, reaching up on tiptoe to kiss his cheek, “but you should take him anyway. See if Peter wants to go with you, Finn loves him.” She turned and walked down toward the elevator and was too far away to hear Bucky grumble about Peter basically being a puppy and that’s why they get along. He watched her walk away, giving a small wave to Hope as she passed. She’d probably text him when she was out and they could watch another one of her movies or something.

                Which was why it was a surprise to Bucky when he finally found Liv on the balcony by the common room 4 hours later. She was just leaning against the railing, watching the sun go down on the city.

                “I’ve been looking for you,” he came up behind her and wrapped his arms across her chest, leaning down to rest his head next to hers, “have you been here this whole time? I was really worried”

                “No,” she said quietly, “I was in the lab with Dr. Cho for a while. It took longer than I thought. Something…came up.”

                “Is everything ok?” He asked. He was trying to keep the concern out of his voice, but it felt like some may have slipped through.

                “Oh yeah, I’m fine. I’m great,” she murmured, “Let’s go in. I think they’re getting dinner ready.” Liv broke free of his arms and, giving him a kiss on the lips, turned to head back inside. Bucky followed her, but not after watching her for a minute. Something was wrong, she seemed almost… cold. Not like his Liv.

                Later that night, Liv had been oddly quiet after dinner and even snuck out early to head back to the room. By the time Bucky realized it and went to their apartment, she was already asleep. He had debated for a moment on waking her up to find out what was wrong, but she looked so peaceful and he just couldn’t do that to her. Instead, he crawled carefully in bed next to her, making sure he moved as little as possible so she’d stay asleep.

                When he awoke in the morning, she was already in the shower. What was going on with her? He wondered to himself. This was really unlike her. Even when she was stressed she didn’t shut herself off from him. He ran up stairs while she was showering and grabbed a bunch of fruit, walking back in to their place just as she turned the water off. By the time she was dressed and drying off her hair, he had made her a small fruit plate. He honestly had no idea what he was supposed to do when something like this happened, he just assumed it was his fault.

                Liv walked out of her bedroom to see Bucky carefully arranging and then rearranging her favorite fruit on a plate. Her heart melted. She didn’t deserve this man.

                “Hey sugar,” she said softly, walking over.

                “Hey певунья,” he answered. The tight apprehension in his chest eased up a little at how she smiled at him. Maybe yesterday was just a bad day, he hoped.

                “Thank you for breakfast,” she smiled, popping a piece of melon into her mouth.

                “Anything for you,” he kissed her nose, “Liv? Is everything ok? Are we…ok?”

                “Oh sugar,” she sighed, “we’re ok. Yesterday was just…I’m not even sure. It was odd. Dr. Cho and I had a long talk about something.”

                “About you working here? About the agents?” he asked.

                “Well…no. Not exactly about me working here. Honey, I-“

                “Sgt. Barnes,” FRIDAY intoned overhead, “Captain Rogers and Mr. Barton have requested that you join them in the weapons room in 10 minutes. It is relatively urgent.”

                “Thanks FRIDAY,” Bucky answered back, “I’m sorry Liv, I won’t be long, ok?” He kissed her nose and walked in to the bedroom to get dressed before heading out the door to meet Steve & Clint. Liv sighed. With nothing else to do, she wrapped up the rest of the fruit and took it with her to the med lab. She could finish it there while she caught up on paperwork.

                “Guess I’ll talk to him tonight, huh buddy,” she asked Finn, who was still asleep on his dog bed in the sun, tongue hanging out and oblivious to the world. Typical.

               

                Later that night at dinner, Liv was trying to find the right moment to pull Bucky away when Sam started teasing her about being alone tonight.

                “Wait, what now?”

                “They want to do a bachelor’s night tonight,” Bucky told her sheepishly, “I told them it was too last minute.”

                “Don’t you guys have to go kick bad guy ass in like 2 days?” she teased them.

                “Yeah, we won’t drink. Ok maybe a little but no hangovers. Besides, the old men can’t get drunk anyway,” Rhodey assured her, “We’ll have him back in once piece.”

                “I’ll be there to keep everyone in line,” Tony told her.

                “Oh yeah, I feel much better now,” she rolled her eyes at him.

                “Liv, I’ll be there the whole time. I won’t let them get in to trouble, I promise,” Steve told her quietly.

                “I’m not really worried, Steve. Go have fun. Just don’t let them take him to a strip club. I think the shock would kill him,” she smirked at him. She sighed as they all gathered together and headed toward the elevator. There goes tonight’s plan to talk to him. And she didn’t even have a bachelorette night to distract her. The girls had decided to have a bachelorette breakfast and go do a spa day a day or so before the wedding. Liv felt weird having a regular bachelorette night. She’d already done one of those a lifetime ago. Or at least that’s how it felt.

                By the time Bucky got back to the apartment, Liv had been asleep for hours. He crawled in bed next to her after kicking off his boots and stripping down to his boxers. Liv slid over to get closer and curled up next to him, never even opening her eyes. Which meant she also didn’t see the smile plastered on his face while he watched her sleep in his arms.

 

                The day of their mission, the team left so early that Liv managed to go back down to her apartment and get a few more hours rest before going up to the med labs to start her day. It was quite a large group this time, and Liv was a little more nervous than usual even though Bucky had more protection than he usually had. She sat at her desk and stared at her laptop screen, completely forgetting whatever information she had just read. Liv glanced up at the clock for the 18th time in 3 minutes. Playing with the little red star at her throat she let out a deep breath and looked back to her screen. Focus, McBride, she told herself.

 

                On the quinjet Bucky was checking the weapons next to Steve, who was reviewing intel on a screen next to him.

                “So you said she was acting oddly?” Steve asked him.

                “Yeah, she was really quiet. Didn’t you see it the other night?” Bucky checked the magazine on one of his guns.

                “I did Buck, but sometimes people are just quiet. Think about what she had to do not that long ago,” Steve cautioned him.

                “I know, but that’s just it. She insists that isn’t the problem and I believe her. She’s a terrible liar anyway,” he answered.

                “So, what’s the issue?”

                “Dunno. Seemed like she was trying to talk to me about something the last few days, but we never got the chance. You don’t think she’s having second thoughts about the wedding, do you?” Bucky’s head shot up and looked over at Steve.

                “She’s not having second thoughts and you’re both idiots,” Natasha interjected, swapping out a handgun with Bucky. They stared at her, confused. Bucky opened his mouth to reply but a notification from Barton in the pilot’s seat letting them know they were 5 minutes out interrupted him. He’d ask later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it only says 28 chapters, but I'm currently writing an epilogue, so...


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ah yes, the Avengers- where every mission goes totally smooth and no problems happen. Ever.

Later that evening, Liv was heading to their apartment for the night. Her shift was, for the most part, over and with nobody in the common area, she decided she’d make an easy dinner and watch Netflix for a bit before falling asleep. She was just shutting down her laptop when an odd whooshing sound started coming from the space in front of her desk.

                “What the fuc-“

Doctor Strange stepped out of the portal, sling-ring glowing. He looked frantically around until he realized Liv was behind him.

                “Olivia, get your med bag, let’s go. We need you. NOW.”

                She blanched for a moment and then dropped the files she was holding back on to her desk and opened the door that lead between her office and the medical bay areas. She had a bag prepped and ready to go, just in case and she was patting herself on the back for remembering to check it earlier when she was antsy.

                “What’s going on, who’s hurt?” she asked, slipping on a pair of boots she kept in her office closet, “CLAIRE! Get in here!”

                “Stark has a concussion, and everyone has minor injuries, but I need you to take care of them. I have a bigger issue,” he looked at her out of the corner of his eye.

Claire came bursting through the door at that moment.

                “What’s going on? Where do you need me?” she said, jaw set and scanning the room.

                “I’m going with Strange through…that thing. I think it’ll be ok with the two of us. I brought Finn back to my place after lunch so can you keep an eye on him in case I’m gone for a while?”

Claire nodded and gave Liv a quick hug before handing her the med bag and stepping back to allow Doctor Strange to lead Liv through the portal. Once in, they began their walk through a wooded area.

                “Tell me before I get there, please. Is he ok?” she whispered.

                “The bomb wasn’t a device. It was a person,” he stated bitterly.

                “What? How-“

                “I have no idea, not yet. But whoever it was contained a volatile power that they increased with magic of some kind. So unstable that they couldn’t contain the sheer enormity of the power so they set it on us when they realized they were losing. Sgt. Barnes was closest to the blast,” he was matter-of-fact in his statement. Liv gasped and tried desperately to keep a hold on her emotions.

                “Physically, he seems intact. It appears that the closer you were to the explosion, the more magic you were hit with. Everything after that was energy. He is in some sort of fugue state and I need to concentrate on bringing him out of it which is why I need you to patch up your team,” he told her.

                He watched her square her shoulders and steady her breath.

                “How much further,” she asked.

                “Right here,” he answered, pushing a branch away to reveal a small clearing. Liv could see what was left of a building not 20 feet away and her team in various stages of injury before her. Bucky was off to the right, laying perfectly still with Steve next to him. He looked up when they heard people approach and relief flooded his face when he saw Liv.

                “Ok,” she said to the team, “who’s first?”

It took her about 2 hours to get everyone somewhat taken care of. Sam had lacerations on his arms, Nat had a cracked rib, Scott & Hope had cuts and bruises and Wanda had a possibly broken wrist. Tony’s concussion wasn’t major, but he still needed to be kept awake so she left that to Rhodey. She eventually made her way over to Steve, who was standing a few yards away from Strange, watching him try to pull Bucky out.

                “What’s going on,” she asked quietly.

                “He’s tried a dozen different spells. He can’t get Buck out of this….thing he’s in,” Steve was frustrated. Bucky was stuck in what can only be described as a magical coma and they had a sorcerer supreme who couldn’t get him out.

                “What can I do?” she put a hand on his arm, “Cap, what do you need me to do?” She needed him to get out of Steve mode and in to Captain America mode. The team needed a bit of direction. He turned and looked at her, noticing for the first time that not only was the team gathered around not far behind Liv, but that she was trying to hold back the tears in her eyes.

                “You already did it, you fixed them up for me,” he put a hand on her shoulder, “I’ll get them toward the jet for now. Can you stay with Strange?” She nodded, never planning on leaving his side in the first place. Steve walked past her and strode over to the team, ready to make a plan for going home while Liv moved closer to Strange.

                “Can you at least tell why he isn’t coming out of this?” she asked.

                “Ah, Olivia, yes. I can, actually. Your future husband is a man full of self-doubt as it seems. Wherever he is stuck in, is somewhere that plays on insecurities and anxiety. Not to the point of despair, but to the point of increased self-doubt, for lack of a better description. Sgt. Barnes is unsure of how much he deserves to come back to this plane. I believe he requires a bit of motivation and direction,” he nodded toward Bucky’s floating form. Liv nodded. She walked up very slowly and placed a hand on his cheek. She looked at the face of the man that she was supposed to marry in a few days and the tears dropped from her eyelashes before she knew what was happening.     

                “James Buchanan Barnes. I know you can hear me. Please hear me, love. Please come back. I need you. I need you to anchor me to this life. Come back to me Bucky, please,” she stepped closer to him and rested both hands on either side of his face, “Sugar, please. You deserve all of the life we have together, I promise you. You’ve saved me, you’ve saved so many people. Look at Steve, you can’t let him lose you again. Please, baby, please don’t leave me here.” The tears were falling from her face freely now and she was choking back sobs.

                “Bucky, I’m begging you. Don’t leave me alone in this world, I don’t think I can do it again. I’m not strong enough.”

                Liv didn’t hear Hope weeping on Scott’s shoulder behind her as she watched them or Natasha’s stricken face as she looked on. Steve quietly tried to usher them in to the jet but he was frozen in place, watching Liv plead with Bucky for his own life. Liv was bent over his body as he floated a few feet above the ground, forehead pressed against his.

                 

                Bucky stood in the center of a dark room, as best he could tell. No windows, a single light from somewhere above him, but he couldn’t see the source. Where ever he was, there was nothing aside from the light and the silence. No smells, no sounds, just nothingness. He stood, listening and waiting.

                “Do you know where you are?” said a voice from somewhere to his left.

                “No, where is this? Who are you- come over in to the light,” he asked, subtly shifting his weight to prepare for an attack.

                Bucky watched as a figure stepped toward him and took his breath clean out of his lungs. In front of him, as clear as if they were sixteen again was Steve. But the Steve Bucky knew when they were kids, skinny, sickly Steve with that determined glint in his eyes.

                “Steve?” Bucky gasped.

                “Hey Buck,” the figure smiled, “we’ve got a lot to talk about you know.”

                “What do you mean? Is this a dream? Am I dead?” Bucky’s heart dropped at the thought. He’d died and left Liv alone, right before their wedding. She was alone again and it was his fault.

                “You’re not exactly dead, no. But you’re not exactly alive, either,” the figure nodded. It waved its hand and a table with 2 chairs appeared in the light, motioning for Bucky to sit.

                “Where is this though, is Liv ok?”

                “Oh, she’s fine. In fact,” Steve cocked his head, listening, “she’s near you right now. You can go to her, if you want. Well, if you really think you should.”

                “What do you mean, if I should?” Bucky narrowed his eyes at the ‘Steve’ in front of him. He knew it wasn’t the real one, but the mannerisms were there, the clothing was right. However, there was just…something off.

                “Come on, Buck. Look at this objectively.”

 

 “Bucky, don’t you dare do this to me. You’ve got a wedding to go to and I refuse to accept you’ll be late for that. You promised,” she looked back at Strange who was sweating with exertion.

                “We’re close,” he said, “he’s very close but he needs more. Keep going. He’s holding back.”

                Liv sighed and closed her eyes.

 

                “What do you mean, objectively?”

                “Well, Liv is a really nice gal, ya know? And she deserves a nice life with someone who isn’t going to let her down. You know, I bet she’s still afraid you’ll go all ‘secret assassin’ on her. Who wouldn’t be? That whole tower full of people probably is! I bet they’re all afraid of you. You know you could easily hurt any one of them without even trying. And what happens when you and Liv have kids? Think you can handle a baby? I bet she wants kids, she’d be a good mom. She’s probably afraid to have kids with you though. Who would want a metal arm like yours near a fragile little baby?”

                Bucky sat and listened as fake Steve spoke, his shoulders dropping slightly and his head drooped, hair falling across his eyes. He was right. People were still afraid of him. Liv never looked like she was afraid, but what if she just learned how to hide it really well?

                “Buck? You listening?” other Steve asked.

                “What? Yeah, I am,” Bucky said looking at the table in front of him, not seeing the smirk on the other Steve’s face.

 

                “Olivia, I can feel him pulling away. Wherever he is, something is happening to make him fight me,” Strange grunted to her through his clenched jaw.

 

                “Yeah Buck, she’s probably better off alone with her dog. Just the two of them, like it was before. She was happy then, ya know?” other Steve told him.

                Bucky’s head lifted at that.

                “No, she wasn’t happy then. She was surviving, but she wasn’t happy,” he said softly, narrowing his eyes at the man across from him.

                “What…what do you mean? Of course she was happy,” other Steve sputtered, shifting in his seat. He looked around through the darkness and back to Bucky.

                “She. Wasn’t. Happy. I know this, because she told me. You don’t even know her. I know her. I do. She’s my sunlight and you’re just darkness. You’re nothing like the real Steve because he’d never be saying any of this,”

                Bucky was standing by now, towering over the fake Steve seated across the table. He gripped the table with his metal hand and flipped it to the side, away from the two of them.

                “Now, Buck, come on, calm down. This isn’t like you,” other Steve stuttered, jumping up and backing away.

                “You’re wrong. This is me. I fight because it’s what I do and I’m good. I’m very good. And right now, I’m going to fight you,” he growled as he was in front of the fake Steve in 2 steps and had picked him up by the neck, raising him to eye level with himself.

                “Bucky,” other Steve croaked, clawing at the flesh hand around his neck.

                Bucky looked at the other Steve and, narrowing his eyes at him, tossed him to the side. He needed to figure out how to get out of wherever he was.

                “You’ll never really love her,” the other Steve gasped, raising himself up on one arm, “you’ll always have a bit of the soldier in you and one day it’ll come out.”

                “Then we’ll get through it together,. You don't know Liv, not really. I may kill people but she saves them. It's what she does and she's better at her job than I am at mine,” Bucky said to the fake Steve. He needed his Liv and she needed him.

“Bucky!”

He whipped his head around, looking all around him. That was Liv’s voice! It was barely more than a whisper, but he would know it was her in a crowded room. He stood in the center of the light, closing his eyes and listening. He blocked out the sound of the fake Steve gasping for breath and listened. He could hear her voice but it sounded like it was far away. She loved him, he could hear her saying. Bucky opened his eyes and looked in to the darkness. He had to walk in to that, somewhere. That’s where his Liv was.

“You’ll never find her,” fake Steve rasped.

“That’s ok, she already found me,” Bucky lifted his face in to a half smile as he stepped out of the ring of light and into the inky blackness surrounding him. Everything was dark and he suddenly felt a pull on his chest and then everything felt very warm.

 

                “Bucky. I love you. I love you from the moment I wake up to the moment I fall asleep and every other moment in the day. You’re my home now. Come back to me, my love,” she placed a kiss on his lips, her voice strangled with emotion, “I can’t do any of this without you. Your past doesn’t matter to me, but your future does. Our future does. Please, Bucky don’t leave me. I can’t be left behind again. Be here, with me. Come back, my love. Come back.”

 

                Strange watched as Liv bent down after kissing Barnes’ lips a second time and lifted his metal hand to her cheek. Moments later, he felt Barnes pull through completely and he was able to let go of the hold he had on him and relax for a moment. He sat back to catch his breath and when he looked back, Bucky had wrapped his arms around Liv and had tears falling from his eyes. Doctor Strange closed his eyes, leaned back on his arms and sighed. He looked at the couple one more time and smiled before passing out from exhaustion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Almost at the finish line y'all! I love all of you for reading this. I honestly do, it's been the best possible experience for a first time fanfic writer.


	27. Chapter 27

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yay Wedding!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love you all, don't hate me. Especially you, nerdytara and Twifan1987.

**2 DAYS LATER**

                “Well if you quit moving, I’d be able to get this thing to lay right!” Nat snapped at Liv. Liv stuck her tongue out at her in the mirror and the pair laughed. Natasha was trying to pin Liv’s veil in her hair while Wanda did finishing touches on the bouquets they were to carry. Liv smiled at the two women helping her through this day and mentally pinched herself that they were even her friends. She did have to laugh though, the fact that the Black Widow was pinning her veil on was a little funny.

                “How’s the boys look, anybody get a peek at them?” Liv asked Wanda. She smirked at her and shrugged.

                “I may have, but I’ll never tell,” she answered through ‘booos!’ from Liv & Nat, “Ok, ok! I will say this. I have never seen that many good-looking men in suits before.”

                “See, that’s the kind of quality content I’m here for,” Liv told her, “Now somebody find me some ducttape so I can get my chest in to this dress. Holy shit….. remind me why I picked a corset bodice again?”

                “Because we all decided that it’d be hilarious to see Barnes’ jaw hit the floor when you walk in,” Nat reminder her, “Here, I think I can loosen it a tiny bit, just try not to breathe too much or something.”

                Liv looked in the floor length mirror in Wanda’s room. Her dress was amazing, she’d have to admit that. The dress itself was a soft ivory color and the corset was dotted with little clear beads that glimmered in the right light. It flared out to a floor-length skirt that was made of layers and layers of chiffon that looked full and slightly stiff when she was standing but flowed like a breeze as soon as she moved. She loved that the bottom hem was long enough that it slightly pooled around her onto the floor while she was standing. Her veil had tiny little white clover shapes embroidered around the edge. She wasn’t originally going to have one at all, but she found out that Bucky was a little disappointed that he wasn’t going to get to do the traditional “unveiling” of the bride so she got a small one, just for him. He had no idea she found out, but Sam can’t keep a secret from her to save his life. And of course, she wore a paid of blue chucks instead of heels.

Her something blue covered, Pepper had lent her a paid of pearl drop earrings for her something borrowed, Nat bought her a silver and red garter as her something new and Wanda found a silver & diamond hair comb shaped like a crescent moon surrounded by stars from the 30’s at their favorite vintage store which would serve as her something old. The comb right now was sitting nicely in her hair, which was pulled back softly in a low bundle to the side, with a few strands of her chestnut hair curled around her face. Pepper had come through with her hair and makeup people again, bless her. Liv smiled at herself in the mirror. Yeah, this’ll do.

                “What was your first wedding like?” Wanda asked gently.

                “It was barely a wedding,” Liv laughed, “we kind of eloped. It was the two of us and my dad, and a few friends. He didn’t want to do anything big and at the time we couldn’t have afforded anything like this anyway, so we went to the courthouse. I didn’t even wear a white dress and I grabbed a bunch of roses from a supermarket on our way there.”

                “So, this is your first wedding dress?” Nat asked, somewhat surprised.

                “Yup. And I think once I’m out of it, it’ll need to be saved somewhere special, for the future,” she answered, absentmindedly. Nat didn’t miss that at all.

                “So, are you going to tell me what happened with Dr. Cho?” Nat cocked an eyebrow at her in the mirror.

                “It was nothing,” Liv sighed, “Well, not nothing entirely. I had an ectopic pregnancy. We…took care of it in her office. That’s why Bucky couldn’t find me for a few hours. I didn’t know how to tell him about it. It’s not like it was even a baby-baby, I was barely 6 weeks along.”

                Nat and Wanda came up next to her and rested their chins on each of her shoulders, hugging her.

                “We’re so sorry, honey,” Wanda said softly, “How did Bucky take it?”

                “I’m still not sure,” she confessed, “I told him the night we got back from your disaster of a mission and he was silent for a long time. I had to explain exactly what an ectopic pregnancy was and why it was dangerous and then what happened in the office. I think he was more afraid I was hurt than anything else. He’s a big fan of the not speaking and holding me really tightly like I’ll float away if he lets go kind of thing.”

There was a short knock on the door before she could say anything more however, and Bruce poked his head into the room, followed by Scott Lang.

                “Ladies? I hope you’re ready, it’s almost time,” Bruce smiled, “You all look beautiful.” He watched Nat and Wanda smooth the lines on their light gray dresses, picking up their bouquets and making sure Liv was all set. Something about Nat’s dress made Scott pause though.

                “Nat, are you- is that a thigh holster?” he asked.

                “What, do you want me to not be prepared?” she looked at him like he had three heads.

                “It’s a wedding!” he looked over at Liv and Wanda, who just shrugged. Well, if Liv wasn’t bothered, there was no use in him thinking otherwise.

                “I’ll head back up and let them know you’re almost ready. You look great, Liv,” Scott smiled at her as he slipped out the door again.

 

                On the roof of the tower, under a pergola covered in white & light peach colored flowers with hundreds of green leaves, Bucky stood off to the side with Steve and Sam, waiting for the rest of the guests to filter in. He was pacing, which was typical for when he was waiting for Liv for anything.

                “Buck, take a breath. She’ll be up here soon,” Steve assured him.

                “Yeah, come on Tin man, relax. You two have gotten through enough bullshit, this should be a piece of cake,” Sam said.

                “I know, this is just…there’s a lot more to it now,” he muttered. Just as Steve went to ask him what he meant, Scott walked over.

                “Guys, the girls are almost ready to head up. They look great, by the way, really great.”

Steve and Scott stepped aside to discuss the smaller details of the ceremony while Sam took the opportunity to walk over to Bucky.

                “Hey man, it’s gonna be great. Stop stressing,” he said to the pacing man.

                “I know,” Bucky answered gruffly.

                “Look, I gotta know. Why did you even ask me to stand up with you? I mean, come on. What’s the deal?”

                Bucky stopped walking and looked over at him. His face took on a softer tone and he took a small breath before answering.

                “You’re important to Liv and having you up there with us when we get married…when I told her I asked you to stand up there with us her face lit up like the 4th of July. I wanted her to be happy, so here you are.”

                Sam blinked and stared at him. He couldn’t quite believe it, but then he couldn’t quite believe it when Bucky asked him to stand up with him when he asked, either.

                “She’s like my best friend, man, like my little sister. The only reason I said I’d do it is because of her, so I get it. Listen, the only reason I met you is because of Steve and the only reason I deal with your ass is for her. Truce, for them?” Sam asked, holding out his hand.

                “Deal.” Bucky agreed.

                “Gentlemen, places please,” Scott came over to them, “I just got the signal from Bruce. Avengers wedding is a go.”

                Steve rolled his eyes as the three of them took their places next to Rhodey, their officiant. It was the only way to get Tony to stop planning parts of the wedding for them. Liv made him a deal, she’d get to pick flowers and decorate the roof, Tony could pick the catering as long as he stopped badgering her about officiating, so they split the difference and agreed on Rhodey. Bucky smiled nervously at him and took his place next to Steve, who was beaming like it was his own wedding.

                “Jerk.”  
                “Punk.”

They grinned at each other. If you had told either one of them in the 40’s that they would be standing on a skyscraper, 70 years in the future watching Bucky get married after one of them tried to kill the other a few years earlier, they both would have told you to have your head examined. Life was funny that way. Bucky straightened up and turned as the beginning of Jason Mraz’s ‘I Won’t Give Up’ started. Liv was going to walk in to something more traditional, but she changed it to this last minute and Bucky couldn’t have agreed with her choice more.

 

                Liv gripped Bruce’s arm as she heard the music start and Wanda stepped forward. Nat turned to her as Wanda started to walk forward and gave her a quick hug.

                “I know it’ll happen, sweetie. You both deserve this,” she whispered to her while placing a hand lightly on Liv’s stomach. Liv smiled as Nat pulled away and winked at her. Natasha quickly turned around and followed Wanda, slowly walking toward the boys, smiling to herself at how goofy Steve looked when he smiled that big. Bucky gave a short whistle and Finn trotted happily up to him from the back of the room where Clint had him stationed. Liv had to laugh at how Clint had yet again, put her dog in a tux. At least this time he matched Bucky. He almost looked like he was taking his job title as ring bearer very seriously, as he walked up to Steve and dropped the small basket carrying the rings at his feet.

                “Ready?” Bruce glanced over to her.

                “Let’s do this, doc,” she grinned at him. Liv’s decision to ask Bruce to walk her down the aisle had surprised nobody except him. He’d been a mentor to her for the time she’d been at the tower, since the very beginning and they had developed a special relationship, somewhere between colleague and family. He was family to her, and so it just made sense. What she didn’t know was that later that night, after she asked him, he wept from sheer happiness. He felt like she was family, too and it made him feel happier than he’d been in a while to know it was mutual.

                The two of them stepped forward and made their way down the makeshift aisle, walking past their friends and team mates, Liv smiling and winking at a few people while Bruce patted her hand. She stifled a laugh when she realized Finn had flopped down between Bucky and Steve’s feet once he realized his job was done. Luckily, Steve had secured the rings from him first. Once they reached the end, Bruce handed her off to Bucky, and gave her a small kiss on the forehead through her veil. Liv smiled up at Bucky while Bruce took half a step back and waited for Rhodey to begin.

                “Welcome, old friends and new ones. We are gathered here today to celebrate the love of these two people, Olivia June McBride and James Buchanan Barnes. We have all watched their time together and how they’ve grown as a couple, even if it took forever to start,” he said with a pointed look at Bucky, “Their love and compassion for each other has been beautiful to behold and their friendship with each of us is something we all cherish. They’ve handled obstacle upon obstacle and because they’re both stubborn mules, they decided marriage was the next one to tackle.” The crowd behind the couple laughed lightly and Liv smiled at Rhodey, silently thanking Tony for suggesting him as the officiant.

                “Now,” Rhodey intoned, nodding to Tony, “who stands with this woman and supports her in her marriage to this man?” Rhodey looked down to Liv and motioned with his chin out to the crowd. She turned and gasped. Tony had stood up, with Pepper, Clint stood behind them and Maria Hill joined him, next to Vision. Even Nick Fury was standing. Sam, Steve, Nat & Wanda had even taken a step away from the couple to stand closer to the rest of the team.

                “We do,” said Tony, “we’re her family.” He winked at Liv, who had clapped her hand over her mouth and started to cry gently. Bruce reached over and squeezed her hand softly and placed it in Bucky’s before taking his seat next to Tony. Liv looked up at Bucky, who was smiling down at her with so much love in his eyes, she thought she was going to drown in it. He slowly lifted up her veil, his breath catching in his throat at the sight of his bride looking up at him. Liv looked over to Rhodey, who winked and continued with his speech as everyone took their seats and went back to their places.

                “Marriage is not a task to be undertaken lightly. It is a lifelong commitment between two souls that can’t imagine their lives without the other one. Some people will tell you that a successful marriage is the old “happy wife, happy life” line but I think that is old and outdated. In my experience, the most successful marriages have been where they fall in love over and over again, always with the same person. They wake up every morning, grateful to be next to them. In our line of work, it seems to be a bit easier to live every day like it could be our last because, well… you get the point. Bucky and Liv know this as well as any of us and if anything, all it has done is bring them closer together. I haven’t seen two people that support and care for each other in the same unconditional way that they do. It’s the kind of love that makes you wish you could find it for yourself but also makes you want to puke when you walk in on them making out in the kitchen at 8am.”

                Liv barely heard the rest of Rhodey’s speech as she was so mesmerized by Bucky. Even when they got to the part of the ceremony where they had to repeat after Rhodey, Liv was on autopilot. She could feel the almost overwhelming amount of love pouring out of Bucky as he watched her. It was something she never intended to experience again, and truth be told she wasn’t sure she’d even experienced anything exactly like it. They had agreed not to do vows and Liv was silently grateful for that, because once she saw him standing in front of her in his blue-eyed suited glory, she wasn’t sure she would have been able to remember anything aside from what Rhodey was telling her to repeat. Just when she was sure she wouldn’t be able to handle any more of it without wrapping herself in Bucky’s arms, she heard the most beautiful sound in the world.

                “You may now kiss the bride!”

Liv laughed as Bucky took a step forward and wrapped her in his arms, dipping her low and planting the deepest kiss they could muster in front of a crowd. Wolf whistles and cheers from the crowd echoed in the air as they straightened up.

                “May I now present to you, Mr. and Mrs. Barnes!”

Bucky grabbed Liv’s hand and raised it in the air as Hall & Oat’s ‘You Make My Dreams Come True’ started playing. Laughter erupted from the crowd along with applause as they not only realized what song it was, but Bucky and Liv actually started dance-walking down the aisle! He smiled down at his bride as she danced next to him and sang away, smiling like it was the best day of her life. He spun her around and kissed her again while they danced along. Behind them, to the delight of everyone, Steve held out a hand to Natasha and they joined the couple dancing down the aisle, followed by Sam spinning Wanda. Their friends and family continued clapping and cheering until the couple was out of sight and off the roof, heading down the stairs to their reception.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I'm writing the epilogue as I post this. I should have it done in a few days. Love y'all!


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing the reception speeches was a lot of fun, hope you like it! Enjoy!

                “Ok, you were right, that song was the best choice. Better than the sappy one Steve wanted,” Wanda admitted, out of breath and hanging on to Sam’s arm as they fell into the common room.

                “Hey! It was romantic!” Steve protested, “The internet told me it was a popular wedding song!”

Liv just smiled and squeezed Bucky’s hand a little tighter. She felt like her whole world was flipping upside down and sliding into place at the same time. He looked down and caught her eye, winking and squeezing her hand back. Sam and Nat went to find the photographer to see if he was ready for them.

                “To be fair, Steve, we did listen to one of your suggestions for our first dance,” Liv countered. 

                “Wait, you did?” Steve turned to look at her, “Which one?”

                “You’ll see,” Bucky answered, winking at Liv.

                “We’d better hurry guys, we’ve got to get the pictures done quick before everyone gets too antsy,” Nat came back in to remind them.

                “Yeah, the photographer is ready for us,” Sam said, coming in behind her.

Bucky crooked an elbow and motioned to Liv.

                “Lead the way, ma’am,” he smiled.

Since it was only the 6 of them (plus Finn), the pictures went by in a flash. They did the typical bride plus attendants, then groom plus attendants, then all 6 plus Finn, then just Liv & Bucky with Finn. Liv asked for one of Steve & Bucky and the photographer got the perfect candid shot of them laughing. She got a good one with just her and Sam that he swore he was getting framed. Before they knew it, Pepper was walking over to let them know everyone was in the reception area. Liv and Bucky locked eyes at the phrase “reception area” and smirked. Tony had cleared 3 entire adjoining conference rooms and turned it into a ballroom seemingly in a week. He had added a 12-foot bar, an area for a DJ and faux hardwood floors. Liv was pretty sure it was modeled after some ballroom at some swanky hotel Tony had been to a dozen times, but she wasn’t about to question it. Especially after she saw the decoration. They had kept her color scheme of gray and peach shades but added in a touch of rose gold and about 700 yards of fabric, not to mention the center pieces on the tables. It was ridiculous, seeing as they hadn’t invited that many people, but it made for a visually stunning room.

                The group headed back toward the doors for the announcement and entrance to the reception. Steve looked nervous, and Bucky probably assumed it was because Liv wouldn’t let him pick his own entrance music.

                “Hey kids, have fun modeling?” Clint asked, meeting them at the doors. He was going to walk in first, with Finn, followed by Wanda, then Sam, then Nat and finally Steve right before Liv & Bucky. Liv had decided to slightly stagger the entrances instead of having the two couples go together. It seemed to fit better and gave them a chance to get good pictures and have a moment to watch everything.

                “Ok, I’ll give the DJ the signal. See you in there!” Pepper said, heading inside. A moment later Beyonce’s ‘Crazy in Love’ came on and Clint strutted in to the ballroom, Finn at his side. Sam danced in a minute later after his name was called, hamming it up, waiting a few yards away for Wanda who slinked in like she was on a catwalk once she heard her name. She took Sam’s hand and they headed down toward the head table. The Natasha’s name was announced, and she strode in, taking a little spin half way down. She turned to look back at Steve and there was a jarring record scratch.

                “Next up is our Best Man! And because he is so very special to the couple, they decided to give him some very special entrance music. Ladies and Gentleman, Captain Steve Rogers!!!!!” the DJ yelled, followed by a rousing dub-step version of the Star-Spangled Banner. Steve’s face turned crimson.  

                “Really?!  I hate you both!” Steve yelled to Liv right before he walked out in to the Ballroom. She would have loved to answer, but she and Bucky were too busy falling over each other laughing.

                “I don’t even care what else happens after this, his face was the best thing I’ve ever seen!” Bucky gasped, wiping tears from his eyes.

                “I know!! Did you see how his jaw dropped when the song started? Oh my god, we are telling this story every year on his birthday!” Liv breathed, fanning herself, “I wish we could have seen everyone’s faces out there.”

                “Oh shit, we’re up next sweetheart,” Bucky realized as he straightened up. Liv fixed his tie and smoothed his hair and he fixed her veil before the DJ announced their names.

                “I should warn you, I changed our entrance music,” he told her, wrapping her hand in his.

                “You did? You didn’t like the other one?”

                “No, I did. I just wanted this one to be for you,” he smiled. She gave him a small, confused smile back and was about to ask what he was talking about when they heard the DJ start again.

                “And now may I please present to you, Mr. James Buchanan Barnes and his lovely wife, Mrs. Olivia June Barnes!” he yelled, as the chorus of James Taylor’s ‘How Sweet It Is’ started playing. Liv lit up and grinned up at Bucky, realizing he remembered one of her favorite singers.

                “Let’s go, Mrs. Barnes,” he grinned at her.

                “Lead the way, Mr. Barnes,” she laughed back.

The pair turned and pushed open the doors, walking in to the cheers and applause from their family and friends. Bucky raised his and Liv’s joined hands as they walked in, laughing at Tony’s loud whistle and Sam’s excited yells while they made their way over to the head table. They took their seats as the clapping died down and Pepper got the mic from the DJ.

                “Hello everyone! Welcome to the wedding of Liv & Bucky. We are so pleased to have you all here with us to celebrate. If you’ll wait just a moment, the waiters will be bringing around the plates and then we’ll have a few speeches after dinner and then dancing! Thank you all, so much, for being here. Just give the waiters one short moment and then our evening of celebration can begin!”

                Liv was pretty sure the waiters were ready to bring out food before Pepper was done with her speech. She had no idea how Pepper pulled it off, but it was the quickest food service Liv had ever seen. On top of that, Tony had made signature cocktails for the pair. The ‘Frozen Assassin’ (because Liv had bitched him out when he tried to name it winter soldier) which was just a combo of Russian black vodka, rye whiskey and apple cider on ice in a lowball glass and the ‘Sassy Medic’ made up of gin, ginger syrup, ginger liqueur and lemon juice, served in a martini glass. Both were very popular at the bar, which meant that obviously Liv & Bucky got competitive on which one was ordered more throughout the night (it was the Sassy Medic by two, which meant Liv did a victory lap around the bar at the end of the night, completely missing the fact that Steve and Nat were in the corner, each sipping one).

                The food was Michelin star caliber and Liv was having a beautiful night, mingling around after she had eaten. She had dragged Bucky over to what she had dubbed the “medical table” as that was where she sat Dr. Palmer and a few of the interns and medical staff she had gotten to know while at Metro General, along with Dr. Cho, and after that they moved around individually to some of the tables. Every now and then they would make eye contact across the room and Bucky would wink while Liv blew him a kiss in return. Before they could make it around to everyone, however, a familiar voice boomed out over the speakers. Liv groaned and looked over at Bucky, who just shook his head and looked around for Pepper. Tony probably found the 30 seconds when both Pepper and Rhodey weren’t paying attention to bribe the DJ for the mic.

                “Good evening everyone! In case there is someone here that’s been living under a rock my name is Tony Stark and I am the sole reason that the happy couple is together.”

                Liv rolled her eyes and locked eyes with Bruce who just shook his head. She caught movement out of the corner of her eye and turned to see Rhodey skidding out of the hallway, followed by Pepper holding a clipboard. They both looked to her in horror, mouthing ‘ _I’m sorry_ ’. Liv gave them a wry smile and just shook her head. Might as well let him get the speech over with.

                “Yes, everyone, it is all thanks to me that we get to witness the 100-year-old man wed this poor, unfortunate girl in her prime. Liv honey, blink twice if you need help. That is not blinking, that is a middle finger. So ungrateful… _Any_ way, the truth is, that I did have the honor to witness the very first interaction between the couple. Liv was being fully and completely underutilized in her department and on top of that was being asked to cover for someone else. These two had the most adorably awkward first meeting I’ve ever seen. I said to Bruce right then, I said ‘those two are going to get married, I know it’ (“No you didn’t!” yelled Bruce from cupped hands). I’m ignoring you. You’re as bad as Liv,” Tony paused, taking off his glasses, “In all honesty, we all love Liv and we’ve all been happy to welcome you in to our family. Bucky is one of us whether he likes it or not, too. Congratulations, you crazy kids.” He raised his glass and toasted the happy couple. Before he could put his glass down however, he was crushed in a hug from Liv.

                “Thanks, Tony. None of this would have really happened without you, you know that, right?” she squeezed him as a few flashes went off around them and the applause started to die down.

                “I know, Stitches, I know. Welcome to the family,” he hugged her back and gave her a quick kiss on the forehead.

                “I think it’s my turn, then,” Wanda spoke up, grasping the mic Tony handed to her.

                “Hello everyone. Please forgive me, I’m not very good with speeches. We usually leave that up to Captain America. I’m Wanda, and I’m one of Liv’s two maids of honor. You see, Liv being Liv, decided that she would have two maids of honor and no bridesmaids. According to her, Nat and I are equally important to her, in different ways. (“And Nat scares the shit out of me!” Liv yelled over) Haha, yes that too! Actually, now that I think about it, that might be how I ended up giving the speech and not Natasha. The truth is, I did want to give the speech because I don’t think I’ve ever told this woman how much she means to all of us and how happy we are to see her and Bucky married. Liv has become family to me over the past 2 years. We understand each other in a very unique way because of our pasts and it has created something of a very special bond between us. To combine it with the experience Tony put us through with school and living at the Tower together… to be honest I couldn’t imagine my life without her. And I think I can say that for the rest of the team as well. You rarely think of yourself, you’ve always got a smile and kind word to say to everyone and we all love you. One of my favorite memories of Liv actually involves Bucky. It was the night you two finally admitted how you felt about each other (“which took FOREVER” yelled Clint) and we all got the rare pleasure of watching two people fall in love and then scaring the shit out of you by cheering through the windows. I know this is rambling, I’m terrible at speeches but what I’m getting at is; Liv, Bucky- I love you both and I’m so glad I got to witness what you two have in person. Bucky, take care of my sister. To Mr. & Mrs. Barnes!” Wanda ended, with a raise of her champagne glass. The crowd echoed her sentiment and Bucky got up to hug Wanda, followed by Liv.

                “Love you, always” Liv whispered in her ear.

                “Love you more,” Wanda whispered back.

“Well, since we’re doing speeches, I guess I should get mine over with,” Steve spoke up, sneaking the mic away from Wanda, “Don’t worry, this’ll be short.” Liv stepped back over to their seats with Bucky and sat down, intertwining his fingers with hers.

                “I don’t think it will come as a surprise to anyone in this room when I say I’ve known Bucky a very long time,” he paused as a ripple of laughter went through the crowd, “I knew him back in his skirt chasing days before the war (“thanks a lot,” Bucky groaned while Liv laughed) and let me tell you, there were a lot of skirts. Not one of them could ever hold a candle to our Liv though. You’d think she hung the moon with the way he looks at her. She’s made him in to a better man, and I mean that for Bucky from any time period. He’s a new man, because of her. It’s like I’ve got my brother back and now, I get a little sister as well. You both deserve every happiness and lifelong joy. To Bucky and Liv!” Steve raised his glass, followed by everyone else. The happy couple smiled, Bucky’s face breaking out in to a grin at the way Liv’s nose crinkled when she smiled at Steve and gave each other a small kiss before getting up to hug Steve.

                Liv could have sworn she heard a choked up Bucky muttering “Thanks, man” to Steve during their hug but she just smiled and turned her head away. Let the boys have their moment.

                “Since we’ve got everybody’s attention and dinner is winding down, I suppose now is as good a time as any for the couple to have their first dance,” Steve announced, with some prompting from Pepper. He glanced over to the DJ and nodded while Bucky held out his hand and led his smiling new wife out to the dance floor. Ella Fitzgerald’s beautiful cover of ‘Night and Day’ floated through the air as Liv and Bucky swayed together on the floor but as the horns and strings picked up he spun her out and the pair launched into a full-on waltz, which surprised even Liv. She knew they were going to dance, but this was more than they had practiced.

                “When did you remember this?” she whispered as he guided her around the floor and out into a spin.

                “I had a little help, but it came back eventually. Come on, doll. I know you can keep up,” he grinned, spinning her back.

                He was right. She could, luckily for him. They floated around the dance floor like professionals while Pepper made sure the photographer got pictures from every possible angle.

                “Did you have anything to do with this?” Tony leaned over to Steve as they watched the couple dancing.

                “Nope, not really. Although, I did suggest a few old movies we used to watch one night and his face lit up. First time I heard this song it was Fred & Ginger dancing to it, but I think I like this version better. What I want to know is, who helped him remember to dance?” Steve replied. He glanced over to Natasha who subtly shook her head. Steve furrowed his brows in question when she flicked her eyes over to Clint, who was clearly trying not to dance in place. Clint helped Bucky?! Steve looked back over to Nat and nodded, holding back a smile- the secret would stay between them. He would’ve paid to see that though.

                As the song wound to a close, Bucky spun Liv one more time and pulled her close to him as the song faded out. She rested her head against his chest, taking in the moment. As the DJ started up a new song and other couples filled in the spaces on the dance floor, the pair used the sudden throng of people to sneak off. Bucky led Liv off the dance floor and through the crowd to the elevators, where they rushed in to a conveniently open elevator (where Liv whispered a thank you to FRIDAY), giggling like a pair of teenagers.

                “Sugar, where are you taking me?” she laughed against his chest. As soon as the doors had closed, he wrapped his arms around her and held her close.

                “You’ll see,” he replied cryptically, kissing the tip of her nose. She smiled. The doors slid open with silent grace a moment later, and he led her out and around the darkened corridors.

                “Buck, we’re in the common area?” she asked as they sped through, looking around. He looked back and smiled, leading her out to the balcony.

                “Oh my….” she whispered.

There were dozens of thick pillar candles of varying height on random mirror plates and pedestals in between dozens of white roses. Bucky took a few steps forward and smiled at his bride. Of course she was crying. Nobody gave it up with happy tears like his Liv.

                “What is all… when did you do this? HOW did you do this?” she marveled, looking around her and back at her new husband.

                “I had a little help, but the idea was all me. I wanted a moment for us in the middle of it all, just a moment with you in that gorgeous dress, all to myself. Something for you to remember, something for me to fill in another space with good memories. I waited 70 years for you, Olivia Barnes and I thought we deserved a dance, without all those eyes looking at us. I love you, певунья. I promise I will keep you safe and love you until the last star dies. This is our moment, Liv. Just you and me. FRIDAY? If you would, please?”

He stepped toward Liv with an outstretched hand as she heard Doris Day’s ‘Again’ and tears filled her eyes. He couldn’t have picked a more perfect song for this. They could get back to their reception eventually but this… this moment belonged to them.

As Liv swayed to the music, with her head resting on her husband’s chest, his strong arms around her full of his promise to keep her safe her thoughts drifted to her children and her first husband. She could see them in front of her, waving with gentle smiles. Her vision blurred as the tears threatened to spill over as her first husband looked at her, smiled and whispered to her to be happy as he took their children’s hands and turned to walk away, fading like smoke. She looked up at Bucky, eyes wet with tears, and smiled. She was getting her new beginning, with their blessing. Bucky smiled softly down at her, thumbing away tears and kissing her face. He knew. He always knew.

“I love you, James Barnes,” she whispered up to him.

“And I love you, Olivia Barnes,” he whispered back, placing feathered kisses on her lips.

“Always?”

“Always, my love. Always.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is where my story for Olivia & Bucky originally ended, but since the responses have been so much better than I ever could have hoped and I have so much fun writing them, I'm currently writing the world's longest epilogue. I should have it done by tomorrow night, possibly later but no more than a few days, promise.   
> I hope you enjoyed reading it! I honestly didn't expect to get more than maybe a dozen hits and I was thrilled with one kudos on it, but here I am, sitting at over a thousand hits and over 60 kudos. My heart is full. I love y'all.


	29. Chapter 29

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First part of the promised epilogue! It was much, much longer than I intended.

**EPILOGUE Part 1**

 

                “She’s going, and that’s final,” Steve demanded, locking eyes with Fury.

                “Fine. But I’m not happy about it. She’s your responsibility, you and Barnes, and if anything happens to her it’s on you. Not me. Understand?” he barked back. Steve nodded while Fury spun on one heel, trench coat swirling and stalked off toward the elevators.

                “Ok, so that was fun and not awkward,” Scott Lang muttered from the corner of the conference room.

                “Awkward or not, we need Liv on the mission. She’s the only medic we have with combat experience and even a basic grasp on biology. Between her and Bruce we can potentially get the issue at this base under control,” Natasha answered, going to stand near Steve.

                “I’d say she’s more than prepared. But guys, do any of you even realize what this weekend is?” Sam asked from the end of the table, “Anybody?”

                Steve looked at the date on his phone and groaned. Nat looked over his shoulder and swore softly in Russian. Clint looked up at Steve as he coughed and squared his shoulders.

                “Ok, so the bigger issue at hand right now is how are we going to tell Liv and Bucky that they are going to be coming with the team on a mission to Northern Canada to deal with a potential biological hazard on their 1-year wedding anniversary?”

 

                “Hey, did you want to order something or are we having a family dinner tonight?” Liv yelled from the bedroom. Bucky was laying on the couch with Finn stretched across his legs, snoring softly.

                “I got a text from Steve declaring a family dinner tonight,” he yelled back, “and I saw Fury leave earlier so there is no way this is a fun movie night scenario.”

                “Balls,” Liv muttered under her breath. She should have known something was going to go down. Their wedding anniversary was coming up and every time there was a memorable event like a birthday or a holiday, HYDRA decided to be a bunch of jackasses.

                “Ok, so what are you thinking,” she asked him while she walked over to the couch where he was, “mission or something more drastic? If Tony was planning a party, I’d know. Pepper would give me the heads up. I don’t think they’ll do a surprise party on you again, not after your birthday.” She laughed to herself when she thought of that. Tony had organized a surprise birthday party for Bucky without telling her or Steve so when people jumped out of their hiding places, Bucky promptly punched the person closest to him, which happened to be poor Vision.

                “You know, at the time it was nerve-wracking but now that I think of it, that night was hilarious,” Bucky chuckled with her.

                “Oh my god, do you remember Tony’s face? He went from happy to ‘oh shit’ in 3 seconds!” she laughed harder thinking about it.

                “Yeah, but I think Barton was impressed that I actually connected with Vision instead of going right through him,” Bucky laughed. Nobody had been able to take Vision by surprise yet, so the fact that Bucky had was pretty impressive.

                “Hell, I was impressed. Steve was…Steve,” she giggled, “and we’re getting sidetracked. What are we thinking on this one?”

                “I saw Fury, we’re a week away from our anniversary so I’m betting they’re going to tell us I’ll be on a mission on the actual day of our anniversary and we’ll be apart,” he mused.

                “Sounds promising. What do I get if you’re wrong?” she murmured, leaning over the couch to kiss his cheek.

                “If I’m wrong, I’ll cook for a month,” he kissed her back.

                “Oohh, I like this bet. What if you’re right?” she kissed him again.

                “Honey, if I’m right, it means we’ll be apart for our first anniversary and nobody wins in that scenario,” he said as he pulled her closer for a kiss.

                “We need to bet like this more often,” she said smiling against his lips.

 

                Later that evening, Liv and Bucky headed up to the common area for family dinner. As soon as they stepped out of the elevator the rich aromas of French food hit them and Liv sighed with happiness.

                “I think you may win this bet, sugar,” she whispered to him, “Steve pulled out the big guns with dinner.” Bucky just shook his head and smiled. He was impressed with how Liv was handling the fact that they might be separated on their anniversary. She was tough and could put on a brave face when she needed to and that was part of the reason he loved her. He knew that even if she laughed at dinner and joked about him being gone, when they were alone he’d know what she was really thinking. No reason to drag everyone else in to any of it.

                “There’s my two favorite people!” Tony yelled as they rounded the corner.

                “Subtle, Stark,” muttered Nat as she walked by him to set more chairs around the table with Steve.

                “Tony,” Bucky nodded.

                “Can we help or is everything set up?” Liv asked.

                “Help me get the wine glasses?” Wanda asked her with a tilt of her head, and they walked off to grab them.

                “Ok Steve, what’s going on?” Bucky asked Steve in a low voice, “There was a meeting with Fury that I wasn’t at and Tony has French food on the ready for dinner. How bad is this?”

                “Well…it’s not terrible. And it’s not what you think…” he started.

                “Ok everyone! They’re starting to plate the dinner so sit, already!” Tony interrupted him.

Liv and Bucky grabbed seats next to each other with Sam on Liv’s other side.

                “Hey cupcake,” he elbowed her.

                “Hey Sam! Missed you at movie night last week,” she smiled at him, “what’s been goi- wait, did Tony have this catered?”

                “Yeah…it looks like he did,” Sam said as they watched the waiters walk through a partition that had been set up to separate the kitchen from the common areas. Liv turned to look at Bucky and they gave each other a look.

                Wine was poured and courses were set in front of them with elegant precision. Liv tried more than once to speak to Tony or Steve but was always interrupted by Sam or a waiter placing another irresistible dish in front of her. Bucky’s luck wasn’t any better. He tried to make eye contact with Nat, who seemed was only speaking to Wanda or Clint and Rhodey was avoiding his gaze. Scott insisted on staring at his plate while Hope would only give him a small smile and a shrug. Thor and Bruce were deep in conversation about something and didn’t seem to be talking to anyone else at the table, much less to Bucky and Liv. Finally, after the last course was finished and desserts were placed on the table Bucky could see that Liv’s patience was wearing very thin. She couldn’t seem to stop bouncing her right knee and tapping her fork with a fingernail. He placed a hand gently on her leg and looked down at her face.

                “Hey,” he murmured, “it’s ok.”

                “I know,” she answered with a small smile, “but they’re taking forever to drop the other shoe, you know?”

                He could smile at that, he completely agreed. Bucky raised his eyes away from Liv’s face and looked over at Steve, boring holes in to his head until the blonde super soldier looked at him sheepishly.

                “Steve.”

                “So, how was your dinner? I think the last rime I’ve had food that good was-“

                “Steve.”

                “And wow, that cream sauce. So good. Think we could make that here-“

                “STEVE.”

                Steve sighed and pushed himself away from the table. Better get this over with.

                “Guys, lets head to the couches, ok?” Steve announced while everyone got up and made their way over. Bucky and Liv settled on to the oversized loveseat while the rest of the team filtered in, taking places on the couches or in Clint’s case, perched on the armrest.

                “Buck, we’ve got a mission. Fury was here earlier, and we had a quick meeting with him-“

                “I already know this part. Get to the part that made you cater a dinner,” Bucky leveled, crossing his arms. Liv was positive Steve couldn’t see the glint in Bucky’s eye as he said it and it was all she had to keep herself from smiling.

                “Right,” Steve coughed, “Here’s the thing. It’ll be on your anniversary-”

                “Dammit!” Liv swore.

                “Listen honey, we know it’s your first one and everything and we’re really sorry about that-“ Nat began.

                “Oh no, it’s not that,” Liv interrupted her, “I’m not getting dinner made for me for a month.” Bucky hid his laugh unsuccessfully with a cough while the rest of the team looked at her like she had 2 heads.

                “Anyway…” Steve began again, “that’s not all of it. Liv needs to come with us.”

                “HA!” Liv yelled at the same time Bucky yelled “What?!”

                “I need her there, I’m sorry,” Bruce spoke up, “It’s a potential biological weapon. Not a person this time, we know that much, and nothing I don’t think we can’t handle but Strange is unavailable, as is Dr. Cho and Liv knows how I work. She’s smart and she’s the only one here with a good enough grasp on biology to help me while not leaving us a man down in the field. I should know, I taught her.”

                Bucky mulled it over, not daring to look at the smug face of his wife.

                “So let me get this straight, you had a chef come to the tower and give us French food, which is Liv’s favorite so you could tell me that on the one year anniversary of our wedding I’ll be going to a mission that involves a biological weapon and HYDRA agents with my wife who is not fully combat trained?”

                “You forgot to tell him it was in Northern Canada,” Tony yelled from the bar.

                “Well,” he looked down at Liv, who was trying not to laugh, “at least we’ll be together on our anniversary.”

 

**

                A week later, they were miles in the sky aboard a quinjet headed north. Nat made sure Liv was outfitted with state-of-the-art cold weather gear while Bucky hid a few knives in her jacket. He and Nat were situated in the front of the jet, going over strategy with Steve and Tony, while Liv was sitting near Bruce, looking over the intel they had been given on the bomb.

                “You were right about the biological part,” she muttered.

                “Exactly. Either I’m crazy, or this looks…plant based,” he murmured next to her.

                “No, you’re right. Look at this,” as she magnified part of the 3d model in front of them and rotated it. Across from them, Wanda sat with Scott and Hope.

                “Do they do that a lot?” Hope asked her.

                “What, mutter about science stuff?” Wanda smirked, “Yes, especially lately. When we’re not on missions, Liv has been in the lab with him. If I didn’t know better, I’d think he was teaching her about biochemistry.”

                “No, that’d be accurate,” Bruce smiled at them, “she’s been an unofficial lab assistant.”

                “Yeah, thanks for that Bruce. She’s been coming home telling me what you two are working on and it’s like my wife isn’t even speaking the same language!” Bucky chuckled, walking over. He still swelled with pride just the tiniest bit at calling Liv his wife.

                “Hey, I thought you liked having a smart wife!” Liv pretended to pout.

                “Of course I do,” Bucky smiled at her.

                “Good, because I honestly wouldn’t care if you didn’t like it,” she smirked at him. Hope laughed out loud and smiled at her.

                “I knew there was a reason I liked you,” she grinned.

                “15 minutes out, Cap,” Clint said from the cockpit.

                “Ok folks, suit up,” Steve said in his Captain America voice.

                “Roger that, Rogers,” Bucky said through tight lips.

                “Shut up, Barnes,” Steve ordered.

                “I didn’t even say anything!” Liv shouted, holding in laughter.

                “Not you, the other idiot Barnes,” Steve remarked.

                “Hey! Don’t talk to my wife like that!” Bucky mock yelled.

                “I should have left both of you at home…” Steve mumbled.

                “Does this count as a comms check?” Nat asked, while Liv burst in to laughter.

                “Hey, I didn’t get yelled at for being an ass this time!” Tony shouted with glee.

                “Not yet, you mean,” Sam interjected.

                “All I want is respect from my team but no, they have to be like this. I bet the X-Men don’t have this problem…” Steve muttered to himself.

                “Man, have you even met Wolverine?” Rhodey started.

                “Funny story, actually-“ Bucky started

                “5 minutes out, get ready kids!” Clint yelled from the front, circling around for a landing.

 

The jet descended slowly as a stillness came over the group. Liv and Bruce took a minute to confer one last time on the weapon they were facing while Nat and Bucky checked weapons. Wanda did a few breathing exercises to center herself while Hope checked the suits that she and Scott wore, outfitted with thermal heating for the cold northern weather. Rhodey and Tony ran quick diagnostics on their suits while Sam checked his guns and Redwing, all while Steve silently watched his team prepare.

                “Alright folks, listen up. We know whatever this weapon is, is biological in origin. Which means we need to get to it as soon as possible. Buck, Clint, you take up sniper positions. Tony, Rhodey, you’ll keep an eye on the skies and Sam will go in with Wanda and Scott. Nat, you’re with me. Liv, Bruce? You’re going to come in directly after us, Hope is going to be with you as cover. Vision is going in to find the weapon and get the most direct route to it. Now, if everyone is ready,” Steve gestured to the back of the jet, “Let’s go.”

                The team headed toward the base in the cover of pre-dawn, moving as silently as they could through the snow. Bucky gave Liv a quick kiss as he ran off to find his sniper position and Hope blew Scott a kiss as she shrank down to fly next to Liv’s shoulder. Minutes later, Vision’s voice came through the comms.

                “Captain Rogers, I believe I have found the weapon. Olivia, if you and Dr. Banner would please head toward the north side of the building on the lower level, I believe there is a rather large window you could enter through.”

                “Oh yay, running through glass,” Liv grumbled.

                “Don’t worry, I’ve got this,” Hope spoke in her ear. The trio rounded the side of the building, meeting Cap and Nat on the way.

                “Vision, what are we looking at?” Cap asked him.

                “Not many guards in the base. It seems to be a small area as well. The weapon is more of an experiment and not as important. Mostly scientists, but they are armed so one would assume their innocence in the matter at hand is non-existent.”

                “Right, if we play this right, we can do this quick with minimal casualties,” Nat spoke up.

                “Hope? If you would be so kind,” Steve gestured to the window. Hope flew away from Liv’s shoulder and closer to the window near them. With a few blasts from her wrists, she broke the glass and flew in, kicking the first agent she came across, closely followed by Steve and Nat running in and attacking anyone that came at them.

                “Liv, honey, it’s time you and Bruce went inside,” Bucky’s voice low over the comms. Liv could hear the slight edge in his voice that only came out when he was in combat.

                “On it, sugar. See you in a few,” she said while she and Bruce ran in after Steve, Hope coming back over to cover them.

                Minutes later she and Bruce were looking at the weapon while Nat and Steve secured the floor they were on. Hope covered the door near them while Bucky moved his position to cover the exposed window.

                “Well, this is….interesting.”

                “I thought it was smaller,” Liv muttered, earning an unexplained laugh from Steve and Bucky.

                “Here, Liv, I found their notes!” Bruce walked back to her, holding papers from the desk of an unconscious scientist near them.

                “Ok, let’s get to work then,” she answered, setting her jaw.

Figuring out what HYDRA had been trying to do with the weapon took Bruce under 5 minutes. It wasn’t very clever and it didn’t even look like it was going to work but it could injure people if it wasn’t disposed of in the right way. For example, smashing was a bad idea. The reactions between the natural ingredients in the casing and the artificial chemicals would cause serious burns, at best. Liv and Bruce got to work slowly separating the weapon, layer by layer. It was working perfectly until an explosion rocked the building, causing Liv to jostle in to a part of the casing.

                “Shit!!” she hissed. Something sprayed out of the casing and on to her arm, instantly burning through the heavy jacket and getting on to her skin before they could react to get her jacket off.

                “What?! What happened, Liv?!” Bucky shouted.

                “I’m ok,” she gritted, “Whatever this is got on me but I’m ok for now. We’re almost done and then we’re out. I’m ok, sugar.”

                Bucky let out a slow breath and shot down 4 agents trying to sneak up to the open window. He got up to move position slightly and sighed. Only his wife would be here, doing this. His life was nothing normal.

                Bruce and Liv managed to continue to separate the weapon from the casing and eventually get the core in to a containment unit Steve brought them, so Bruce could study it further in his lab. He was positive it wasn’t volatile, which was lucky.

                “Bruce…” Liv moaned, swaying where she stood. Steve rushed over to catch her before she fell.

                “Bruce, are we done here?” Cap asked.

                “Yeah, let’s get out.”

                “Fall back team, weapon is contained,” Steve said in to his comm, running out of the window with Liv clinging to his neck.

                Bucky looked through his scope and spotted Liv, conscious but looking like she was in pain being carried by his best friend. He fired off a few more shots to cover the team as they left the window, then jumped up to meet them at the jet.

               

                “What’s going on, is she ok?” Bucky asked, bounding up the ramp in to the quinjet.

                “Buck, she’s ok,” Steve reassured him, “she and Bruce did what they needed. She’s ok.”

                “There was a liquid inside the casing, like some kind of backup. In case someone tried to take the bomb apart without understanding it, they’d get burned, quickly,” Bruce explained, “When that explosion went off, Liv got knocked in to part of the casing and it burned right through her jacket in seconds. I’ve never seen anything that fast. It burned her skin, but the liquid doesn’t seem to stay there for long. She was lucky her sleeve was so heavy.”

                “Then why did Steve have to carry her?” He asked, breathing a sigh of relief.

                “She worked through the pain, you know, Liv being Liv,” Bruce said to him, “She didn’t tell me how bad it was until she almost passed out. I’ll run a blood test when we get back, but I think she should be fine.”

                Bucky clapped a hand on to Bruce’s shoulder in thanks and headed over to Liv, who was teaching Wanda how to properly apply a bandage.

                “Really? You can’t just let one of us do it?” he smirked at her.

                “Hey, Wanda volunteered and asked me to show her, so go yell at somebody else, Grampa,” she teased.

                Bucky knelt down and kissed her before pulling away and pressing their foreheads together.

                “Please, never do that again,” he murmured.

                “Well, tell that to whoever blew up part of the building,” she answered with a smile.

                Wanda finished the bandage and Liv settled in to her seat next to Bucky while Clint flew them home. The weapon core was secure, the team was mostly uninjured and they were headed home. It didn’t take long for liv to fall asleep leaning on Bucky’s shoulder. He leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on his wife’s sleeping head.

                “Happy anniversary, певунья,” he whispered.

 

That night, Liv walked back in to their apartment, greeted by her happy dog and a relieved husband.

                “Hey handsome, how’s my boy?” she crooned to Finn as she ruffled his ears.

                “Bruce get all his tests?” Bucky called from the kitchen.

                “Oh yeah, we did a blood draw, a full body scan, some weird ultrasound type scan Tony concocted to check for nanites or some shit and a retinal scan for fun. It was great. He should have results by the morning, but I’m not too worried. I am, however, exhausted.”

                “I made you a quick salad, so eat that then you can crawl in to bed,” Bucky told her, walking from the kitchen to wrap his arms around her, “I’ll even carry you, if you want.”

                “Deal. Salad, then shower, then bed,” she smiled.

                “Good. I’m taking Finn out quick. We won’t be long, eat then shower then bed. Love you,” he said while he kissed the tip of her nose. She smiled in return.

                By the time Bucky made it back, however, Liv was already fast asleep. Her hair was wet, so that was a good sign and there was an empty salad bowl in the sink, so Bucky smiled and got undressed, crawling in to the bed next to his sleeping wife, very careful not to disturb her.

 

                The next morning Bucky woke up early, letting Liv sleep in. He took Finn for a Run with Steve and then dropped him off with Clint in the common room while he trained. Before he knew it, it was close to noon and he hadn’t heard from Liv yet.

                “Hey FRIDAY?” he asked the AI while he was in the weight room.

                “Yes, Sgt. Barnes?”

                “Has Liv woken up yet?”

                “No, Sgt. Barnes, but I don’t detect any distress in her vitals. Just extreme exhaustion. She is unharmed.”

                “Ok, can you let me know when she’s waking up?”

                “Of course.”

                After a quick shower and change, Bucky headed down to the labs to see Bruce. He should probably know if Liv was still asleep and whether or not it was normal.

                “Hey, Bucky!” Claire, Liv’s nurse waved to him, “How’re you feeling?”

                “Hey Claire, I’m pretty good,” Bucky answered, “Liv’s been asleep all morning though.”

                “Oh, well yeah, that’s to be expected,” Claire smiled at him, patting him on the arm, “The bloodwork came back that none of the toxin made it in to her system. Everything is going to be just fine. You should still go see Bruce though.”

                “Thanks,” he smiled, “Speaking of, have you seem him?”

                “Yeah, I just left him. Last lab on the left. See you later! Hey, you guys still owe me that double date!”

                “Oh yeah! I’ll remind Liv.”

                “Good, because all Miranda’s been talking about is your damn bike since the last time we went out to dinner,” she scowled at him playfully.

                “Ha! Bring her to the tower some time, I’ll take her down to the garage and we can mess around with it for a bit. I’ll even take her to Tony’s garage for a bit,” he smiled. That garage had all the neat toys.

                “Sounds like a date! Thanks, Bucky!” Claire smiled and waved, turning to head back down the hall. Bucky turned and headed to one of Bruce’s many labs in Stark tower. Knocking on the door, he opened it up to see Bruce smiling at him.

                “Hey! How are you?” Bruce walked over, grabbing Bucky’s hand and shaking it.

                “I’m fine….how are you?” he asked warily. This was very unusual behavior from Bruce.

                “Great! I saw you spoke to Claire, did she give you the good news?”

                “Oh yeah, she told me. I’m guessing that’s why Liv is still asleep right now?”

                “Oh yes, she’ll be tired for a while. I’m surprised she’s not nauseous, but not everyone has that side effect.”

                “Nauseous? I thought the toxin wasn’t in her system?” Bucky asked, slightly alarmed.

                “What? Oh, no there’s no toxin in her system. But what her body is going through is going to wear her out for a while until she adjusts properly.”

                “Wear her out? Bruce what the hell are you talking about?” Bucky shouted, gripping the back of a chair until he bent the metal.

                “I thought you talked to Claire,” Bruce said, narrowing his eyes, “and she was supposed to call Liv…”

                “Bruce…” Bucky said slowly, “what is going on?”

                “Well,” he coughed, “this puts you in a very unique position. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of the father finding out about the pregnancy before the mother.”

                You could have knocked Bucky over with a feather. In fact, it was probably good that he backed himself up and dropped in to the chair that Bruce rushed over to him before he fell over.

                “She’s…..pregnant?” he whispered.

                “Yes, she is. She’s actually much further along than most women are when they find out. She’s almost out of her first trimester,” Bruce looked up from Liv’s chart in his hand, “Bucky? Are you ok?”

                Bucky was stunned, but a smile slowly started to creep across his face. He was going to be a father. Liv was having his baby. They were going to be a family. He looked over to Bruce and smiled.

                “I’m going to be a dad.”

                “Yes. Yes you are,” Bruce smiled at him.

                “Is the baby ok?” All Bucky could think about was how Liv was before, with the ectopic pregnancy. They weren’t ready then, and they had barely even discussed children, but knowing she went through that alone killed him. He didn’t want to see her hurt now.

                “Yeah, it’s great. We had to do a full body scan and then Tony’s bizarre ultrasound, so I didn’t see the scans until this morning. It’s a perfectly healthy fetus, exactly where it’s supposed to be.”

                “Why do you keep saying ‘it’,” Bucky asked.

                “Because I won’t know the sex until another ultrasound and even if I did, I spilled enough beans for one day, don’t you think? I mean, Liv doesn’t even know yet. How does she not know, by the way?”

                “Her periods are light, and she skips them when she’s stressed,” Bucky shrugged. That was the one thing Liv made sure he was acclimated to, that a woman’s monthly courses were no longer a hush-hush subject. Once he realized that everything he learned about it in his youth was wrong, and she re-educated him, he was supportive. Well, as supportive as a person without a uterus can be.

                Bucky’s eyes lit up and he jumped up, turning to Bruce.

                “Don’t tell her!”

                “Excuse me?”

                “That’s it, don’t tell her! The baby is healthy, she’s healthy. We don’t have any missions any time soon. I want to tell her, but I think this needs to be something special.”

                “Are you sure? This is a big thing and she might want it to be private,” Bruce reasoned with him.

                “I understand what you’re saying, but this is Liv. She loves to share good news with people. I know exactly what I need to do, but I need you to NOT tell her, ok? Please?”

                “Ok, fine,” Bruce sighed, “but you might want to get ahold of Claire, too. She’s the only other one that knows.”

                “On it!” Bucky said over his shoulder, grabbing his phone and pressing a few buttons, “Hey Claire? You haven’t seen Liv yet, right? Great. Listen, I need a favor…”

 

                Half an hour later Bucky was knocking on Pepper’s office door.

                “Oh! Sgt. Barnes! Good morning! We didn’t have an appointment, correct?” Pepper smiled at him.

                “We did not. I need your help with something,” he smiled broadly, “It’s a surprise for Liv.”

                “Well, by all means, step inside and let’s see what we can put together,” she smiled, ushering him in, “Now, what did you have in mind?”

                “It may be the most unique party ever held at this tower…” he answered as they closed the door, grinning happily as he thought of his plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry, I uploaded both parts. I'm not that cruel.


	30. Chapter 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part 2!

That evening Bucky and Liv were having dinner in their place while she pretended not to see him sneak table scraps to Finn who she also pretended not to see under the table.

                “I still can’t believe you let me sleep that long,” she shook her head, pushing the salad around the bowl with a piece of grilled chicken.

                “You were exhausted and you went through a traumatic experience. Bruce said your body is recuperating the way it thinks is best,” Bucky said, not meeting her eyes.

                “At least we know there weren’t any toxins in my system,” she sighed, “I just wish I wasn’t so tired. And can you do something about the chicken in the fridge? I think it turned.”

                “Did it?” he asked with a raised eyebrow, “I’ll take care of it. I was thinking, feel like doing a family movie night day after tomorrow?”

                “Yeah! That sounds nice. It’s been a while. Think you can get Sam to come this time?”

                “Oh yeah, I’m pretty sure I can get him to show up,” Bucky smiled over his glass. He watched Liv as she ate her dinner in relative silence, practically bursting to tell her that she was growing a human life as they spoke. Just when he didn’t think he could love her anymore than he already did, she went and did something like making him a father. That alone was something he thought he’d never have, and while he was over the moon about it, he was terrified. As soon as they made the announcement, he was going to talk with Tony or Shuri about sensitivity calibrations with his arm. When the thought of the announcement crossed his mind, he smiled to himself. Bucky had no idea how he was going to get through the next few days without telling her.

                Lucky for him, it wasn’t that difficult. Liv and Claire were dealing with a training accident with some personnel for most of the following day, while he and Pepper finalized details. Liv was so busy, in fact, that he was also able to train with Steve, take Finn out for a run twice and go shopping for baby things (which he squirreled away in Bruce’s apartment). By the time Liv came home that night she was so tired he barely got her to eat her dinner before she took a shower and almost fell asleep on the bed.

                “Come on певунья, sit down,” he said softly, lifting her up and placing her in front of him. He grabbed her brush from the night stand and gently started to untangle her long hair, working his way up from the bottom.

                “That feels nice, sugar, thank you,” Liv practically purred. She closed her eyes and started to lean back slightly, resting her arms along Bucky’s thighs.

                “You had a tough day again. You’re still tired, Liv. Don’t push yourself so much,” he crooned to her. He set the brush next to him and gently worked his fingers through her hair, getting the last of the knots and then, letting her hair go, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her back against his chest. He could feel the rise and fall of her body slowly become steadier as she fell asleep against him. Bucky smiled down on her as he shifted her body into the bed and got undressed to crawl in next to her. Finn’s nose popped up next to the side of the bed, close to pressing in to Liv’s abdomen. He looked over at Bucky and went to nudge Liv’s stomach softly.

                “Shhh, no buddy, let mommy sleep,” he whispered to him, “she’s going to be tired.”

Finn gave him one last look and lay down on the floor next to Liv’s side of the bed, just like he used to when she lived alone, his bed far away on the other side of the room.

 

                “Buck, honey? I’m home!” Liv yelled in to the apartment. It was Friday, the day of the “movie night” and she had worked a long but uneventful day. She was glad to be back to their place, and she was guessing from the fact that Bucky was gone, as well as Finn that she missed him for their afternoon run. She walked further into their apartment while dropping her things on the kitchen counter and noticed a note on their whiteboard on the fridge.

               

                _Liv,_

_Helping Steve with something, take a shower and head up when you’re done._

_I’ll meet you up there._

_Love you xoxo_

_-Buck_

 

                Liv smiled while she read it. He must have been planning on being stuck up there a while to have Finn come with him. Well, that or Clint needed a buddy. She kicked her shoes off and padded over to the bedroom, getting ready for her shower.

                One nice, warm shower later she had her hair wrapped in a towel and was putting lotion on when she heard her phone ping from the charger. Peeking around the bathroom door she saw that it was a text from Wanda.

                _Hey! When are you heading up?_

                _Probably 15 minutes? I got out of the shower like 5 min ago._

_Ok!! It’s a testosterone fest up there, Nat isn’t up there yet either and I don’t want to hear bro_

_Bro talk all night, lol._

_No worries! I’ll be up asap._

 

Liv grinned and set her phone back down. She could live with her hair being a little wet for tonight. It was only the team, right?

 

                20 minutes later she was standing in the elevator in her favorite skinny jeans with the rips on the legs and her off-the-shoulder Led Zeppelin t-shirt. Her hair was still damp and she had thrown some makeup on just for herself. The doors slid open and Liv stepped out into the lobby to total silence. Which was weird and not normal.

                “Guys?” she called timidly. Still nothing. No Tony’s sarcastic comments, no Clint teasing Nat, no Sam egging Bucky on….nothing. Where was everybody?

                She walked through and rounded the corner to the common rooms and promptly screamed and almost fell over.

                “SURPRISE!!!”

The entire team was standing in the common area underneath a huge banner with ‘CONGRATULATIONS’ on it, there were streamers and balloons in pink and blue, there were about 2 dozen cupcakes in the same color motif and a table full of wrapped presents.

                “What…the fuck is all this?” she stared, looking over to Bucky.

                “Hey you,” he walked over and lifted her up in to a hug.

                “Hey yourself,” she murmured into his neck, still slightly stunned, “Bucky, what the hell is going on?”

                “It’s a surprise baby shower,” he said softly, smiling at her.

                “Honey, it’s amazing, but I’m not pregnant,” she looked in to his eyes, pressing her hands lightly on his shoulders so he knew to let her down to the ground.

                “Actually…,” he started, looking over to Bruce.

                “I’m sorry, do what now?” she stared at him and looked over to Bruce. The rest of the team was watching in anticipation.

                “Hey Liv. Remember when we did those blood tests after the toxin got on your hands? We knew they didn’t find any toxin but guess what they did find?”

                “Little baby Barnes!” yelled Tony from behind Bruce.

                “Shut. UP!” Liv grinned, “Shut your mouth. I’m pregnant?! How the hell did I miss this?! I’ve actually been pregnant before, what the hell?!”

                “Yes, you’re pregnant. And you’re almost out of your first trimester with a healthy baby,” Bruce smiled at her.

                “He’s right where he’s supposed to be, according to Tony’s bizarre machines,” Bucky said next to her.

                “And YOU,” she said, shoving Bucky gently, “How did you pull this off, let alone find out I was pregnant?!”

                “Funny story, actually…” he started. Bucky then told the rest of the team how Bruce had spilled the beans to him by accident and then how he came up with the idea for the baby shower and how he had roped Pepper in to helping him.

                “Has everyone known for the last 2 days?” Liv looked around.

                “No, we found out this morning,” Steve said smiling at her, “We all ended up going to a bunch of different baby stores and probably bought more than we needed to.”

                “How many presents in that pile are from Uncle Steve?” Liv smirked.

                “Too many,” Sam answered, “but not more than from Uncle Sam. I just realized how that sounds… Damn.”

                “Yeah, you need a new nickname from the baby.”

                Just then Clint came from the back of the crowd with Finn.

                “Finally got it on him!”

Liv looked down at Finn to see that Clint had modified a kid’s shirt that read “I’m the BIG brother!” and somehow gotten it to fit Finn, who was happily prancing around the group soaking up all the attention.

                Liv smiled and leaned back into Bucky’s arms. Just when she thought she couldn’t love him any more than she already did, he had to go and organize her baby shower/pregnancy announcement. She was a lucky, lucky woman.

 

 

**Approx. 6 months later**

                Liv was struggling to get out of the chair in her living room. Her stomach was massive, and even though she had Bruce triple check, there was only one baby in there. And that one baby was kicking the hell out of her bladder which was going to become less of an annoyance and more of a cleanup on aisle 3 if she didn’t get out of the damn chair. She was determined not to call Bucky out of the bedroom, where he was moving furniture around to make space for the bassinette and she’d be damned if he walked in on her peeing herself. Finally hoisting herself out with a combination of rocking and moving her own inertia, she made it to the bathroom just in time.

                “Shit,” she muttered and winced.

                “What, what’s wrong?” Bucky said, rushing to the bathroom door.

                “Nothing, honey. I think I pulled a muscle getting out of the chair, it’s ok. I’m fine,” she reassured him.

                “Are you sure?”

                “Bucky, I love you, but out of the two of us, which one has actually pushed a human baby out of their vagina before?”

                “Fair enough, call me if you need me,” he smiled and went back to the bedroom.

Liv stood and wobbled to the door, pausing to breathe through some pain. There was no way she was going to admit to Bucky that she may have overdone it. She just needed a little more rest. Rest was good. She told herself that one more time as she lowered herself down to her own bed and closed her eyes.

 

                “BUCKY!!”

                He jumped up out of a sound sleep. It must have been close to 3am, glancing at his phone he confirmed it. He looked to his side and realized Liv wasn’t next to him.

                “Liv?!” he yelled, panic seeping in to his voice.

                “In here!” she called from the bathroom. He jumped up and untangled his feet from the sheet, managing to get there without falling over.

                “What is it, what’s wrong?” he skidded to a stop in front of the door.

                “I was wrong, it wasn’t a pulled muscle. I was in denial about it,” she grimaced from the edge of the bathtub.

                “Ok, do I need to call Dr. Cho or Bruce or Claire or something? What does this mean? Do you need me to help you back in to the bed?”

                “It means the Eagle Has Landed honey. I’m in labor. It’s early stages, calm down. But calling someone couldn’t hurt.” She figured he needed something to do while she focused on breathing. She shook her head as Bucky’s eyes got wider as the realization hit him like a ton of bricks.

                “Ok, it’s ok, we’re ok, I’m gonna go get your bag and then I’ll call Steve. Not, Bruce. No, Dr. Cho or somebody else or should I call Steve first? I’ll get your bag,” he mumbled to himself, pacing around the room.

                “Honey?” She smiled.

                “I need my phone, where is my phone. Ok, call Dr. Cho, then Bruce, then Steve and he’ll let everyone else know, Clint will have Finn,” Bucky said to himself.

                “Honey,” she said a little louder.

                “What, what’s wrong? What do you need?”

                “Pants, sugar. You need pants,” she said to him, hiding a smile.

                “Shit, I do need those,” he said glancing down.

                “Bucky, it’s ok. I’ve done this before. Take a breath, call Dr. Cho and then Bruce, just like you said. Call Steve after them. It’s going to be ok.”

                Bucky took a deep breath and walked back over to the bed to grab his phone and call everyone they needed to. Liv counted between contractions, trying to breathe through the pain and not hurt her jaw by grinding her teeth. She had a particular quirk when it came to pain; the more pain she was in, the quieter she was.

                “Calls have been made, Liv,” Bucky said as he came back in to the bathroom, “Dr. Cho is meeting us at Metro-General. Steve is letting the team find out when they wake up. I’m sorry I freaked out.” He ducked his head a bit and walked over to her. She braced herself on the bathtub and hauled herself up to wrap her arms around her husband.

                “It’s ok, Bucky. Really. I’d prefer this over some horror stories I’ve heard where the non-pregnant parent is apathetic,” she said, resting her head on his chest as best she could with her belly in the way.

                “I’m usually the calm one,” he snorted, “this is a huge switch for us.”

                “I know, it’ll be ok. If you need to go rip a log in half or punch a tree to feel manly again, I’ll call Steve,” she smiled. He laughed. Good to know Tony was still getting use out of that story.

                “I think I’ll be ok for the time being. I can always go look at the bike in the garage or something,” he smirked into her hair as he kissed the top of her head.

                “Good, but maybe later, ok? I think we need to hurry up a bit. And call Doctor Cho to get here ASAP,” she said, gripping his shirt while a contraction passed.

                “Why here? She said you’d have time. Liv…what was that,” he said, standing stock still.

                “She needs to get here because I’m having this baby in the tower. That was my water, which broke. On your foot. So…sorry about that,” she said, making a face.

 

                After a flurry of Bucky calling people and getting Liv up to the med lab in time to meet Bruce while he was walking through the doors, he was off to retrieve Wanda and Nat. Liv had requested them in the room with her and he wasn’t going to let this one thing in her birthing plan go all to hell, even if everything else had. He headed to Nat’s room, pounding on her door like a SWAT team.

                “WHAT?! She answered the door with a handgun pointed at Bucky’s forehead, immediately pulling it away when she saw his face.

                “Liv is in labor now, she’s having the baby here,” he started.

                “I’m on it, head back down, I’ll get Wanda,” she cut him off and shut the door, he would assume to stash the gun back where ever it went. He stood in the hallway for a minute, taking a deep breath. His child was coming in to the world tonight. It was actually happening. He was shocked out of his thoughts by Clint throwing his door open down the hall and looking at Bucky with a smile on his face.

                “Sorry, that woke you up, didn’t it?” Bucky apologized.

                “You’re forgiven on account of baby time,” Clint grinned, “Now, if you’ll excuse me, we have a waiting party to get together.” Taking a deep breath he ran over to the nearest door and started slamming on it with his palms, running down one end of the hall and up the other, hitting every door with a vengeance while yelling “THUNDERCATS ARE GO!!!”, not waiting to see if anyone actually got up.

 

                Down in the med labs, Liv was with Bruce, slightly stressed out that she was having the baby at the tower.

                “Bruce, I know we’re pretty close and everything, but I was literally never expecting our relationship to get to the point where you see my lady bits,” she grunted through a contraction.

                “To be fair, I don’t think this was ever on either of our radars,” he admitted, “but we should be ok. I called Strange, he’ll be here in a minute and so will Helen.”

                At that moment Liv heard the familiar sound of Strange’s slingring portal on the other side of the doors. Her shoulders relaxed slightly when she realized he had picked up Dr. Cho as well as her OB from Metro. Minutes behind them were Wanda and Nat, going up to stand on either side of her bed, near her head. Wanda took her hand and started rubbing it soothingly.

                “How’s Bucky?” Liv asked Nat.

                “He’s Bucky,” the redhead smiled at her.

                “He almost went to get everyone without pants on,” Liv smiled, “it’s adorable how he’s a mess for once and I’m the calm one.”

                “Hello Olivia,” Dr. Stein said to her, “how are you feeling?”

                “Well, there’s a watermelon trying to get out through my vagina, but other than that I’m good. How are you?”

                “I got to go through a portal, so that was nice,” her OB smiled back at her.

                “It’s the little things,” Liv grinned.

                “Let’s see where you are, ok?” as the OB gloved up and checked Liv’s cervix. Dr. Strange moved away from the room and headed to wait outside the door in case he was needed again, followed by Bruce. They met Bucky, who was walking in.

                “Everything is ok, Bucky, she’s ok,” Bruce reassured him.

                “Thanks Bruce,” he sighed, “Steve is in that lobby area down the hall. I think they’re using it as a waiting room.”

                “They?”

                “Clint woke up everyone else.”

                “of course he did…”

 

Bucky walked in to what is now Liv’s delivery room, just in time to hear Dr. Stein talking to her.

                “Well, Olivia, I think it’s time to blow this pop stand.”

                “That soon?!” Bucky said to her, going to stand next to Wanda near Liv.

                “Oh yes, it’s happening,” she smiled at the couple, “so I suggest if there is anyone not here that you want here or anyone you need me to kick out, it should get done now.”

                “Let’s do this, Doc,” Liv grimaced. Bucky got in to the position Liv had asked him to, behind the bed. He was tall enough that he could lean over and hold her hands if she wanted and still be able to rest his head next to hers.

                “We’re ready,” Nat nodded to her.

                “Ok then. Here we go,” said Dr. Stein, re-gloving and getting her stool ready.

 

2 hours later, James Buchannan Barnes walked out to the waiting room slowly, cradling a tiny little baby swaddled up in the soft, rose-colored blanket Wanda brought down with her. Nat walked in behind him.

                “Hey everybody, I’d like you to meet Violet Mae Barnes,” he spoke softly with a huge smile.

The team that was gathered there all got up eagerly to meet the tiny new addition to life at the tower. Bruce smiled down at the baby and gave Bucky a gentle pat on the arm. Sam and Steve playfully got into a quiet argument about who would be the better Uncle.

                “Hey, guys, she’s going to have a whole team of Uncles to spoil her rotten,” Tony interjected, “and besides, obviously I’m the best Uncle. How’s mom doing?”

                “She’s great. Wanda stayed with her while they got her a little cleaned up. She’s exhausted, but she’s doing great. Bringing Violet up here after her first feeding was Liv’s idea,” Bucky beamed. He was so incredibly proud of his wife. He always knew she was tough and determined but watching her give birth to their daughter he knew he’d never underestimate her (or any woman) again.

                Steve walked up next to him to coo at his niece while Tony slipped away to see how Liv was doing for himself.

                “Buck, she’s perfect,” Steve smiled, watching Violet fuss the littlest bit and get closer to Bucky’s chest.

                “Yeah, she pretty much is,” he agreed. Bucky felt a soft nudge at his feet and looked down to see Finn sitting, patiently watching him.

                “Hey buddy, want to meet your sister?” Bucky said softly, kneeling down. Finn sniffed the tiny bundle gently and then gave her exposed hand the tiniest lick. (Later on, they would discover that whenever they couldn’t find Finn while Violet was napping, it was because he stayed next to her crib. Finn stayed near Violet as her protector and official tea party companion for the rest of his life.)

                The rest of the team headed off in different directions, Sam to get more sleep, Steve started breakfast for everyone that was staying up and Nat went to hit the showers. Bucky was left standing alone by the large glass windows with his daughter, watching the sunrise. It was a totally new day, and he was a new father. He looked down at his daughter, with her dark, downy hair and little pink face and something settled inside him.

                “Hey little one,” he began, “I’m your Dad. I never thought I’d see you, and now that you’re here…I can’t describe it. I spent so long in the company of bad things, bad people. I think you’re here to balance it out, my little one. You and your mother. I promise that I will love you both until the end of time, you have my word. You are the most perfect thing I’ve ever seen in front of me and I’ll try to do right by you and your mom, ok little one? I’m going to tell you a secret. Your beautiful mother doesn’t know it, but she saved me. She likes to say I saved her too, that I gave her a new beginning in life. If I try for the rest of my days I’ll never do enough to deserve her. Especially since now she gave me you. I never thought I would fall in love after what I had done. I didn’t think I deserved love, much less a family but now I have both. I have you, my little one. So welcome to the world, little Violet. Welcome to the rest of the family. You have Uncles that will spoil you and Aunts that will protect you and two parents that will love and adore you. Everything is going to be ok.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And thus ends my story of Olivia & Bucky. Well, so far. I've got a few ideas for one shots and things involved with them. We'll see.   
> I want to say that this has been the best first experience in fanfic writing I could've hoped for. There were so many lovely comments and I still can't believe how many kudos have been left on this. Thank you all so, so much. I mean that from the bottom of my heart.


End file.
